#people are scared of Tim drake for good reason

[felidacy]

Rogue system knowledge & Tim and Jason

@head-in-the-clouds27 regarding your question about if Talia will know about the Rogue system for Tim and if this change in Tim would also make the dynamic with Jason different got me thinking. So here is what I thought about. 

Rogue System & The League 

Tim is a natural snoop that makes unreasonable amounts of contingency plans as he goes, which is why he weasels himself into Barbara Gordon’s heart through lighthearted trash talk about Bruce & Dick and thirst for knowledge in order to learn more about computer science from day one. (Tim is not arrogant enough to think he could achieve the same level of greatness through the lack of a teacher.) As such, Tim learns about the League when he wasn’t supposed to know (really dumb of Bruce when Tim could be at risk, did he learn nothing?) when he snoops through the Batcomputer and decides then and there that attracting the interest from them is far too dangerous. 

Paired with the newly attained hacker knowledge and having no qualms about using questionable methods like gaslighting and blackmail, Tim uses that to control a large part of the Rogues underground. Unintentionally he becomes one of the big bosses in the crime family as he forces them to alter pieces of information, use codes that only they understand, and build up a cover-up to make it seem like they use it for every vigilante and not only for a tiny Robin. (Whoever doesn’t do as he is told is either being put into a trap with Batman arriving or Tim makes it through cleverly planned incidents and more gaslighting that the Rogues end up fighting each other. You would assume that they understood that quickly, but people are sometimes stupid and like underestimating Tim, and as such, some more drastic measures needed to be taken. In the end, though, they learned to listen after all.) 

It is that altered information that the League is only aware of because when they infiltrate some of the crime families to learn about the system, the plan never goes according to plan. Despite Talia’s strong suspicion of that bird, Ra’s has enough of losing good assassins for some measly system along with the unwanted attention of the Detective again that he orders them back. Talia is supposed to concentrate on their newest project that she put at risk because of Batman being too close for their liking now. (Talia does as she is told despite her dislike as she forms her new, little soldier through manipulation and honey-covered lies she whispers into his ears. With hundreds of years of knowledge, she knows just how to use pawns when it involves the pit.)

Jason and Tim’s first meeting

Like in canon because of the Red Hood’s appearance in Gotham, Tim is forced to leave for Florida and prohibited from leaving the Tower for an unknown amount of time. Tim does not mind that he is essentially skipping school for that time, however, he does mind that he was totally caught off-guard by the Waynes and as he was rushed through the Zeta tube he was unprepared. With the Waynes being unaware of his nature (granted that is on him 100% and isn’t it what he wanted) there is not enough time to take a lot with himself, which includes the much-needed packages of blood he regularly consumes to stay sane and, you know, alive. 

It isn’t much of a rebellion when he tries to escape out of the tower and much more of a healthy desire to live. Tim might not seem like it with his unhealthy tendencies, but he does have a stronger will to survive than a wet paperback. But as predicted with someone like Batman, the safety measures prove themselves to be fruitful and even Barbara does not want to help him out, instead reinforcing the system. It is completely unreasonable and overkill in Tim’s eyes when heroes from the Justice League show up when he does end up getting out by a sheer miracle. Finally meeting the Green Lantern he loved ever since he was small (Tim is in denial that he still is) isn’t worth it though with the follow-up lectures, but the worst ones are when Superman - who is practically like an uncle to the Waynes - shows up and gives him that disappointed puppy look. Even when the man isn’t his uncle because Tim is not a Wayne by any means, it has a deadly effect on him. And then come the messages from Dick that make Tim feel so guilty that he lets go of his stubbornness for once and plays obedient soldier. 

(Tim watched with rising panic as he depletes the little amount of blood resources that he had and a familiar feeling of hunger settles in him. Being alone and hungry was a familiar friend, if you could call it that, for Tim. But Tim had gotten so used to a different reality -although it was still slow going as both Bruce and Tim himself were hesitant- that it was now something that he dreaded.)

With very poor timing it is when Tim is at his worst that the Red Hood breaks into the Tower and comes across Tim. Not Robin, but Tim the monster. A boy that he heard a lot about through Talia and yet that boy before him then wasn’t quite as helpless and weak as he has been told. He had a familiar edge in his smile, in the way that his eyes seemed to stare straight into his soul and how he didn’t hesitate to grasp a knife as a weapon. (Robin was supposed to be the comfort, the sneaky surprise that struck when you least expect it. Not deadly dangerous. That wasn’t Jason or Tim, they were familiar with the darkness and didn’t hesitate to use it. They were a different kind.) None of that mattered to the Red Hood in that moment however. The pit hummed in satisfaction to have an evenly matched target that could keep up with its strength, though technique wise they were far different. The pit drowned out how similiar the two were, the pit only made the Red Hood see green and so incredibly angry. 

The Red Hood wasn’t the only one who was filled with an unexplainable surge of power, however. Tim fought viciously against the larger man who could count himself lucky with the helmet, because otherwise, Tim would have already ripped his throat open. He made do with the knife in his hand instead of his Bo-staff and he managed to hurt the Red Hood more than once, although none of the wounds are fatal enough to halter the man in his steps. Angry at that, the Red Hood managed to push Tim down the stairs where he crumbled into a mess along with his weapon when bones snapped. Groaning and cursing Tim was ready to get up again when he was shoved back down and the Red Hood took off the helmet. 

Jason Todd, his hero, his dead Robin stood before Tim. Not so dead after all. 

The reveal was a greater shock than when Jason leaned closer and spat a choice of words at the replacement. The pretender. The cuckoo that snuck into a nest he wasn’t supposed to have when he had his own family. Nevermind that it was a poor excuse of one. But Jason didn’t know anything about the truth. How could he? He didn’t know that he lost his mother long before she died of person. Didn’t know that the comatose state of his father was a mercy in disguise. Didn’t know that the Waynes didn’t even truly want him. Jason was angry at Tim and regardless of the explanations that he tried, the older didn’t want to listen to him any longer. 

As such, the slitting of his throat came quick like the strike of a viper. Jason didn’t care as Tim bleed out then and there. He left his message for the Bats and left without even sparing Tim another glance. That hurt more than it should have and it took Tim longer than he wanted to call back the logical part of his brain. Like, how he was in danger of dying. He activated his emergency beacon and hoped that Bruce and Dick would soon come, but Tim knew that his survival rate wasn’t great. (Vampires weren’t immortal despite popular belief in pop media. He had seen it with his mother after all. Vampires turned grey in a way no human could and not long after they would turn to ash. There was a reason that the Drakes were apparently always burned and not put in coffins.) Tim did not wish to die, so he did the only logical conclusion. Crawling to the knife that was kicked aside by Jason, he took the weapon in his slippery hands and prayed that all the blood on it was more from Jason than his own. His own would have proven to be useless. With probably not much time left, Tim licked the blood off from the knife even when it made his poor throat scream in more pain.

However, that was nothing compared to the following. Tim had never tasted such awful blood like then. It was rotten and slid down his throat like sludge, he needed to fight against the urge to throw it back up again. Forcefully he kept his mouth shut even when the heat set in. The usual healing effect of blood was cool and numbing to his body, but this blood scorched from his insides and decidedly did not start healing the wound. Being a naturally cold creature, the heat was nearly unbearable to endure. At first, Tim thought he misjudged and that he would die that die, but then he did realize that there was somewhat of an effect. While it didn’t heal the wound, it stopped the blood flow enough that he could outlive the attack. 

Later on Bruce, Alfred and Dick would wonder how Tim survived. They were thankful beyond belief, but there had been so much blood and Tim lied so cold and still that Dick fully expected to have lost another younger brother when he didn’t have the chance to protect him, again. Tim did not want to talk about that day, barely even spoke which was at first explained by the injury but later on put on as trauma. Tim would end up disclosing who the Red Hood was, but beyond that there was not a thing he explained. 

Dick caught Tim more than once staring into the mirror and looking at the scar, the first scar that was ever left on his body. Dick would try his best to cheer him up and explain that it didn’t make him ugly or anything, but Dick had no clue to the extent of how much it truly unsettled Tim. For the first time, the powers of his have failed. Tim wasn’t scared of the attack itself or what Jason had done, Tim was scared that it could happen again now. 

#Tim drake as a Vampire #Jason Todds titan tower attack #batfamily #Tim Gaslight Gatekeep Girlboss Drake #Tim the crime boss #Dark Tim #the rogues invent a Tim warning system for themselves #people are scared of Tim drake for good reason #feral tim drake #are you really the bad guy when you become the crime boss tamer on accident and you want to keep people save #dick grayson #dick graysons guilt keeps him awake at night

[scintillyyy]

sorry but. like. the thing that gets me about the drakes & the graysons and that photo of them is that there was no particular reason behind tim's parents sending that photo to dick except just to be kind to a boy who just lost his parents. like they developed that photo and probably realized they might have one of the last photos of dick & his parents ever taken and then they decided to send it over to him just so he had it. and there was no expectation of anything in return!! they didn't know bruce or care about being in his good graces. they didn't make a fuss over having it or super bother dick--they just sent him a copy of the photo and then laid the whole thing to rest. and like. think of it.

when the drakes were at the circus & janet was nervous about tim being scared and jack zeroed in on the graysons to introduce tim to so tim knew the performers were just people under the costumes, nothing to be scared of, & they were so polite about interrupting the graysons just to ask for a photo & the graysons were so kind to *them* in agreeing for a photo to add a little specialness to their little boy's first time at the circus & make him feel better about it....

and then those parents die!! the ones who were so nice to them and *their* son & they could just delete the picture and try to forget about it because it's a reminder of the incredibly traumatic time their whole family went through by witnessing a death but instead they decided to develop it and send it to dick just to be kind to a son whose parents were kind to their own.

#actually when you try and make it that they were trying to curry favor with bruce you do ruin this #this was a simple act of kindness. #they could have got rid of all reminders of that night #but they chose to send dick a photo of his parents. #(this is why they rolled up as a group in blackest night btw they're all super tight in the afterlife)

[dio-niisio]

(English is not my first language, so please ignore any mistakes! :-))

Ok I've been imagining a scenario that for some reason Martha and Thomas Wayne are brought back from the dead...

One day they are dead and the other they are starting at their graves, reading their names and being very confused.

Alfred probably finds them first, he looks out the window and sees two people standing in the family cemetery, Wayne Manor had problems in the past with grave robbers, and he would be damned if he let that happen with their grave. So poor Alfred runs, grabbing some old shovel on the way (just to scare, not to harm!), ready to give an ear full on these people. That's when he sees. His friends.

He's surprised to say the least. They don't look young, the years they were gone caught up to them. Thomas has mostly grey hair and Martha had a white strip of hair right in the top of her head...

Alfred doesn't know what to do, so he brings them inside. And starts to prepare some tea while he tries to explain the past 30 something years.

The next person who sees them is Dick, he smelled the tea and was going to get a cup, then he saw the people in the painting on the top of the stairs. And he panicked. Cuz he knows what that implies, and he is worried for his dad.

He introduces himself as 'Bruce's son' which gets them to be a very happy set of grandparents, he tells them the story of when Bruce adopted him (cuz grandpa wanted to meet his mom, in the end he got a nice and tragic story of the flying Grayson's)! And how he always wanted to meet them! He also text Jason, telling him to get his ass downstairs and talk to his family.

Jason almost had a heart attack, he thought that Dick wanted him to talk to Bruce not grandpa and grandma, he's very happy of course, but he's worried for them, resurrection isn't something nice, but they assure him they are as good as they could be. And it is his turn to explain that he's also adopted (they laughed at the tire story, he told them it was one of Bruce's "fancy cars"). He comments that he and Martha have matching hair (both with a white stripe right in the middle).

Tim comes home around noon, he's been spending time with some school friends, and when he hears some commotion in the kitchen he goes to investigate, that's when he sees them and thinks he's hallucinating (again), but he's reassured by a very happy grandma. He tells them he's 'Tim Drake-Wayne', and is his time to explain that no Bruce didn't marry a Drake, he is his legal guardian (aka Dad) cuz when his parents died on a archaeological excavation his uncle was not fit to be his guardian so Bruce stepped up.

Thomas and Martha are so happy in a couple of hours they went from being dead to having 3 beautiful grandchildren! They are very proud of Bruce for making a difference in these boys lives!

That's when Damian walks in the kitchen he just wanted Alfred's help with something, he looks just like Bruce when he was that age (or what they think Bruce would look like), he doesn't look surprised or excited, he just says that he's Bruce's 'biological son', which gets one of his ears pinched by Dick with a very stern 'be nice'. Before they can ask anything they're being hugged by Damian who says that it is nice to have them in here.

When Bruce comes home he's very tired™, he had a day full of meetings on Wayne enterprises and he still gotta do Batman stuff. He passed through the kitchen and saw that his kids had guests over. He doesn't think much of it until he gives a good look at them.

"Mama? Papa?"

And the world stopped spinning. That's them! All he wanted to see since he was an 8 year old little boy. He just doesn't believe it.

He looks just like his dad. Probably a bit shorter (and not rocking the mustache), but he has his mama's eyes. And her smile. He missed her smile so much! He missed his papa's hugs, he missed the lullabies his mama used to sing, he missed playing pretend with his papa, he missed them.

And he can't say a word. He just cries. He hugs them and he cries. His mama and papa are really back! They are back home!

And now it's his turn to catch up! And boy he's got a lot to say!

As they move to the living room Thomas gives this look to Alfred, smiles and says "Thank you for caring for our little boy, old friend!"

"Little boy? I'm sorry Mister Wayne, but that's an understatement. He's almost taller than the cabinets!"

#martha wayne #thomas wayne #bruce wayne #batman #dick greyson #jason todd #tim drake #damian wayne #alfred pennyworth #dc comics

[that1emowitch]

At the end of the world / Or the last thing I see / You are never coming home, never coming home

Prompt from @tuna-f-b: Do you still do request? If yes and angst is o.k: what would happend i all the bats died? Like how would the hero community react. The supers alone. Clark having to deal with losing his best friend(?) and the kids he basically co parented- as well as seeing his sons lose their best friends(?) Specially as ships that would be awesome angst

A/N: I'm not crying you're crying (Also, for those who don't know, Izzy is Duke's canon gf and one of the Robins from We Are Robin)

Words: 2504

TW: Mentions of blood, Major character death, Coping with loss, Self-blame, Mentions of relapse (drugs)

“If you’re watching this, I am either deceased or indefinitely unable to continue my duties as Batman. But the world still needs Batman. Gotham still needs Batman. My son Damian Wayne, if he is an adult, shall inherit my mantle— if not, Dick Grayson will take over until he is. In the event that he, too, is unavailable for any reason, the mantle goes to Tim Drake, after him, to Cassandra Cain, then Duke Thomas, then Stephanie Brown, then Jason Todd, should he accept it.”

In the video recording, Batman pauses, taking a deep breath.

“In the unfortunate event that the entire family is… deceased… I have a list of contingency plans on both the Bat-Computer and the Justice League’s primary databases. Oracle will help you access it, but in her… absence… the password is “a6ghr83kc02m”.”

Then video-Bruce takes off the cowl, his pale blue eyes looking straight into the camera.

“I know I was never the best with feelings. But I would like my children, my allies, and friends to know that I’m proud of you. And to my fellow Justice Leaguers… Diana and Clark, I am truly grateful for your companionship. I would never have made it this far without you. Barry, Arthur, Dinah, J’onn, you’ve all been good friends. Oliver, Hal… you’re not so bad either.”

Bruce turns around, and looks over his shoulder, the shadows of the Batcave making the scene even more dramatic.

“I wish you good luck.”

Then the clip ends.

A shuddering breath leaves Clark.

It’s real.

He’s really… They’re all…

He can’t do this anymore. He turns around and walks out the door, leaving the other core Justice Leaguers staring sombrely at the now-blank screen.

He doesn’t know when he started flying, when he started trying to escape. The walls of the Watchtower seem to be suffocating him, but he has enough sense not to just leave the airlock yet.

Instead he finds a corner by a window, far, far away from the others, where he can see a majestic view of Earth, the moon, and the Sun in perfect sync with each other.

He falls to his knees.

His breathing’s uneven, a tear rolls down his cheeks.

Then he feels a hand on his shoulder— soft, trembling, yet steady.

“Kal,” Diana whispers, sitting on the floor next to him. She doesn’t continue— she isn’t sure what to say.

“They’re all going to die, you know? We’re going to bury all of them. Everyone on Earth, everyone we know.” Clark’s voice trembles, in a way Superman’s never does. “It scares me so much.”

“Kal,” Diana says again, pulling Clark into a hug. “It’s okay. We’ve lost… We’ve lost so many of our friends. It’s okay to be scared. It’s okay to grieve.”

“How are you— how are you so—” Clark can’t form his words properly. He turns to Diana, to see her face tight with grief, eyes misty with unshed tears.

Her voice breaks slightly as she speaks. “I don’t want to believe they’re gone. But… we have to carry on. We’re the Justice League. Our people need us, Kal.”

“So we just go on and on? Forever?” Another tear runs down his cheek. “Ollie, Hal, Dinah, Lois, Jon, they’re all going to… they’re all going to die one day and we just have to… to go on?”

“I’m sorry, but it is the truth,” Diana whispers, her eyes stinging with hot tears. “We must find peace in the fact, right now, that Batman— Bruce, the Robins, they— they were so brave. Brave till the end. And they fell as warriors, defending our world. I’m sure they’ll all reach Elysium.”

“And Dickie, Damian, Jason, Tim, Cass, Duke—” Clark’s voice is hoarse. “They were so young, just kids… I… I know Dick, Jay, Tim, Cass… they were adults, but… they’re gone, they’re gone…”

“They were heroes, like you and me. Don’t forget that.”

“I… I know, I just—” Another shuddering breath escapes Clark. “I just— I…”

“It’s okay,” Her voice is forcefully steady, but with an undertone of heartbreak. “It’s okay…”

Dinah looks around the room, her heart heavy.

Clark has left, Diana’s gone after him— both of them need their space, she knows. They were close to Bruce and the other Bats in a way no one else in this room was.

Was.

The word still weighs down on her.

Hal speaks up finally, breaking the deafening silence. “I always thought he hated me.”

No one replies for a long moment.

“I miss the kids,” Barry says finally, his voice quiet. “They were just… Robin was only 14. The others, even Nightwing, they had… they had their whole lives ahead of them.”

More silence.

“Jason, when he was Robin— do y'all remember? Kid was always my favorite,” Ollie says finally. “Was always so sassy. Roy loves him.”

Loves. Dinah winces, but doesn’t correct him. It’s easier to believe they’re just gone for a little while.

“Bruce was a good man,” Arthur adds. “They all were.”

“Tim was, I believe, the smartest,” J’onn says, somber. “It was his plan that allowed us to save Earth.”

“Damian!” Dinah says suddenly, jumping from her seat. “His… his mother. She shouldn’t have to find out from someone else.”

Everyone freezes, faces tight.

Dinah sighs, looking down. “I’ll do it.”

Then she leaves the room, dragging what feels like a heavy weight tied to her soul. She has to do this.

Roy’s sitting in a corner of his apartment, hugging his knees. All he can think of is Jason.

He’s never coming back.

He can still feel the lingering ‘goodbye’ kiss Jason gave him not two days ago, he can still hear him say, “I’ll be back before you know it, babe.”

He never came back.

He’s dead. Dead— dead dead dead DEAD DEAD—

“Small Red not okay?” A booming voice snaps Roy out of his thoughts. He looks up to see Bizarro’s pale blue skin and cold eyes looming over him. He’s crying. “Red him coming back.”

It takes Roy a second to register that Bizarro speaks backwards. It takes everything in him to not punch him for saying that, for giving him false hope.

He feels something he hasn’t felt in years— feels that whisper in his mind— one hit and it’ll all feel better. Just one hit.

NO! He screams mentally. He feels like bashing his head open.

Instead he lifts his dead eyes to survey the rest of the room— Kori’s on the couch, staring into space. Artemis has a crying Lian in her arms, she’s showing her something— old photos of Jason. Talking, whispering in a broken voice.

No, no he should be the one comforting Lian—

What’s he gonna say?

That— That Jason— That her Papa’s gone forever? That he’s never— he’s never coming back?

No— Jay— Jay deserved so much better, he— he already died once before, he’s been through so much, things were supposed to be better now— not— no, he’s— 

Roy feels Bizarro sit beside him, gently patting his arm.

He snaps out of his thoughts again, turning to Jason’s former teammate, his eyes red-rimmed. His voice raw, he whispers, “Jay’s gone…”

Wally’s standing in the Hall of Heroes, staring up at the holographic projection of Dick— he looks so majestic, so mighty, staring ahead with nothing but hope and courage in his eyes.

Nothing like the cold, dead body that Wally held in his arms just two days ago.

He’s surrounded by his teammates, his friends— Kaldur, M’gann, Artemis, Zatanna, L’gann, Garth— yet he feels so alone.

He sees it again— Dick bleeding out it his arms, his wounds so fatal he died before help arrived. Wally’s the fastest man alive, damn it, yet he couldn’t even save his best friend— his boyfriend. He feels the moment when Dick’s breathing stopped, when his body went limp, when his grip on Wally’s hand loosened.

Everyone’s quiet. M’gann’s stress baking again, L’gann by her side. Artemis and Zatanna are sitting together, Garth’s lingering in a corner, and Kaldur’s standing right beside Wally— close enough for comfort but not so close he’s lurking. He’s shaking.

He can still hear it, hear Dick forcing out his last words, telling Wally it’s okay, that he loves him, that it’ll be fine.

It’s not fine. Not without you.

He wants to scream.

He wants to cry, yell, hit something, do anything.

But he can’t move.

So he just stands there, almost as still as the holographic projection of Dick before him.

Kon is left reeling.

Tim… Tim is…

Tim’s dead.

Tim’s really gone.

He thinks, for just a second, that this is how Tim and Cassie must have felt when he and Bart “died”.

Bart is sitting beside him on the couch, leaning on his side, Cassie’s got her head on his lap. Neither of them speak— Bart’s not even fidgeting— they’re all just trying to be there for each other.

The other Titans are up and about, but staying close for comfort. Jaime and Gar are making food for everyone in the kitchen, Raven and Vic have come back to the tower to make sure the others are okay, and he’s sure Karen’s around too, somewhere.

Yet he feels so empty.

Feels nothing at all.

How can he, when his best friend is dead?

Jon hasn’t spoken in a bit. Not when his Mom brought him his favorite soup, not when Grandma and Grandpa showed up to ‘help’ him and Dad through this, not when Krypto plopped down beside him to comfort him.

He hugs the dog close.

Krypto’s technically Kon’s, but Jon’s sure Kon wouldn’t mind if he stole Krypto for a day.

Another sob escapes him, and he buries his head in Krypto’s back. The dog whines, licking Jon’s hand.

He can’t believe Damian’s gone. 

Really gone.

And he didn’t know just how much he would miss his friend.

Dinah finds Talia Al Ghul on a building in Metropolis, overlooking the city. Her face is tight with sorrow, but she keeps herself in check, her back straight, head held high.

She already knows, Dinah deduces.

“I… I’m sorry,” Dinah starts, unsure of what to say. She knows, from her experience as a psychologist, that ‘sorry’ is the last thing a grieving person wants to hear, but she doesn’t have anything else to say.

Talia doesn’t reply for a long time. Then she says, her voice numb, “I should have known, when bringing Damian into this life, that I would also be bringing him amidst the dangers that come with.”

Dinah’s brows furrow. “It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have done anything at all.”

“I should have trained him better, I should have kept him close, I should—” Talia takes a shuddering breath. “I should have never brought him into this life.”

Dinah can’t argue with that— she knows how Damian had come to be, and it… wasn’t the best birth ever.

“Now leave, hero,” Talia says, her voice numb and cold. “Go back to protecting the world. Leave me be.”

Dinah wants to say something better, comfort the woman, but she can’t. So she just turns back, and leaves.

By the time Harper Row makes her way to the Clock Tower, there’s already quite a crowd there— Kate, Renee Montoya, Harley, Ivy, Silena, and Helena Bertinili— they’re crowding around Babs, comforting her. Luke Fox and Isabella Ortiz are at the computer, looking through something.

Harper tries to open her mouth to speak, but she can’t get the words out.

She makes her way over to Luke and Izzy, shoulders hunched.

Just three days ago she’d been hanging out with Duke and Izzy and Cass and Steph— they’d all been so carefree, so happy…

And now…

Once she gets close enough she realizes Izzy’s crying, and immediately wraps her arms around the shorter girl. Harper’s trying to hold back tears of her own, too. She feels Luke putting a hesitant hand on her shoulder, squeezing tight.

No one speaks for a long time, they just stand together, seeking comfort in each other.

Then Babs rolls her wheelchair to the center of the room, wiping at her bloodshot eyes. But when she speaks, she sounds surprisingly steady. She’s compartmentalizing, Harper realizes. Putting away Barbara and bringing Oracle back.

“Gotham needs her heroes, now more than ever,” Oracle says, head held high. “We must honor our friends by doing the one thing they’d have wanted— to keep fighting. Keep Gotham safe.”

She sighs, her face tight to fight away tears. “Luke. Batman’s contingency plan, in the Robins’ absence, was to pass you the mantle of Batman. Do you accept?”

Luke’s eyes grow wide slightly, but he straightens himself, looking away. “I… I accept. Dad isn’t going to be happy, but… Gotham needs Batman.”

“Thank you.” Oracle nods at him. “As per Bruce’s will, all Wayne assets, the Manor, and the Batcave are split between Kate, me, Alfred, and Lucius. I… Lucius and I are still figuring out who’s going to take over Wayne Enterprises, but on the vigilante side, I’ve got a plan.”

She turns to Ivy, Harley, Kate, Silena and Helena. “The Birds of Prey are needed here, now more than ever. Dinah— Black canary has offered to help us with Gotham, too.” 

Harley nods, sniffling. Beside her, Ivy speaks up, “The… Most Rogues aren’t happy about this. They’re not rampaging— Bane has fashioned his own version of the Batsuit, he’s going around ‘saving’ people, screaming that Batman never dies. The Joker’s searching for Lazarus Pits and Bruce’s body. Jervis Tetch and Nygma held a get-together yesterday, in the memory of the Bats. I… I think they might help us.”

Harper’s gotta admit, she’s quite surprised about this. Even Babs freezes, taking in this information.

“Gotham needs Robin as much as she needs Batman,” Izzy speaks up from beside her, her voice small but firm. “The Robins can come back, this time you can give us formal training so we can actually help.”

Oracle turns to Luke. “Taking on Robins is your decision, Batman.”

Luke winces at that title— it doesn’t feel like an honor to him, it just feels like an incessant reminder that he’s the last one left. Because his friends are dead. But he nods, anyway, not trusting himself to speak right now.

Then Oracle addresses Harper. “I… would you like to be Batgirl?”

Harper’s heart stops. Memories flash into her head— seeing Steph in the Batgirl costume, seeing Cass in the Batgirl suit, both of whom are now gone.

“N— No,” Harper stutters out, eyes tearful. “I can’t— I’m sorry, Babs. I appreciate the offer, but… Cass was Batgirl. I can’t take her place.”

“I understand.” Babs just nods, lips pursed, misty-eyed. “We will all need to work hand-in-hand until everything settles, we will need to be vigilant. Carry on Batman’s legacy, for as long as we may need to.”

No one speaks again.

They all just let it sink in, hearts heavy.

They’re going to have to do this alone now.

#batfam #batfamily #justice league #core four #bruce wayne #jason todd #dick grayson #damian wayne #cassandra cain #stephanie brown #duke thomas #harper row #barbara gordon #luke fox #jayroy #dickwally #birdflash #timkon #damijon #jla

[dairy-farmer]

Actually? Can't stop thinking about this possibly expanded Time-Loop Of Bad Ideas AU? Because EVERYONE could get one! That Idol was made for Life Lessons and good at it's job!

Why NOT Moar Loops~☆?

And? Was GOING to suggest the whole BatFam. But this time not together. BUT THEN? My muse(adhd brain) smacked me and called me a coward! Go BIGGER they demanded! That sexy, sexy genius(me)!

That bust was probably not in Gotham! Or at least, not FULLY in Gotham. Maybe it was Superman, maybe someone else, but SOMEONE saw the Idol when Bruce found it.

We have PROTOCOLS, Batman.

That YOU made.

GDI. He sighs, but admits it's true. And Magic Bullshitry means getting scanned for Curses and Compulsions. Everyone up to the Watchtower. *various Bat Children groans of annoyance* No getting out of it. Come on, better this then getting possessed.

They Zeta up. Annoyed but here.

It's late and they'll probably miss dinner.

Come to find out? Fuckin EVERYONE but Captian Marval and Wonder Woman, who knows Magic, is off doing "Magic". Just... unspecified, vauge, could be anywhere, "Magic".

REALLY?!

AND they get pulled into a last minute, emergency, meeting about where they should store the Idol. Because all Wonder Woman and Marvel can TELL them about it? Is "Yep, Cursed. Probably."

And so they are annoyed. Everyone is arguing. Tensions are getting higher and higher. Somebody mutters a snide comment about somebody ELSE'S sidekick, and? Punching breaks out. Shoving. The big three stand to break it up.

But it's too late.

Some IDIOT throws a CHAIR. Their target, being a trained hero, OBVIOUSLY dodges. Which means it sails right across the table and HITS THE IDOL. Crash!

BOOM.

Everyone is slammed back by a lightshow and huge wall of air. Wonder Woman is FURIOUS. Marvel scared. Everyone gets checked out. Everyone, Go Home and isolate for AT LEAST 24 hours. Report any symptoms or strange thoughts.

They go home. Go to bed. Midnight.

Click.

Everyone locked in their own little Loops.

Now, some of those affected? Lesbians. Married and grossly, gooey, shmoopy, "No, yooou~♡" hang-up type In Love. Or just not in to him.

But! How many people in Loops? Do you think? Get that Bad Idea impulse~

Feel their eyes get drawn towards the Highly Competent and Sexy, Red Robin? Pretty-boy Tim Drake? Their Friend, colleague, or the son of such? It's a time loop. Who would ever know? They HAVE always been... curious.

I mean, they'd treat him right. It's not like they're HURTING anybody! Doing anything against his consent. It's just a Bad Idea.

Batman would murder them. Nightwing would help. Launch them straight into the nearest black hole. Or it would CHANGE things. Their relationship altered forever. Or... well, he's their Brother. Their Son.

So many reasons Not Too.

But it's a Time Loop.

They wear you down. Mentally and emotionally. You get lonely. A little bit crazy. Start doing things you know you shouldn't.

Like eating out your Boy until he's sloppy and ruined, fingering him for hours. Just to feel that sweet heat in your hand. Lazily resting you head on a trembling stomach, not letting him escape. Not hearing him ask for it to end, only whimper that it's too much. Because he's so good for you. And always has been.

Or finally breaking down, when the loneliness gets unbearable. And clinging like an octopus, as you bend your little Tim in HALF. Rolling and snapping your hips like you want to crawl inside his skin. Soaking in the pleasured cries your punching out with every thrust. How CLOSE you finally are.

Sneaking in windows, early in the morning. Teammates, Supers and Speedsters. Crimelords, here to pound him rough and sweet on his own bed. People who should NOT, but do~

Why so early? Uncle Clark?

What brings you to Gotham, Hal Jordan?

Hi, Roy, looking for Jason?

Even crossing paths, as choices diverge things. Ah, Aquaman! Your Majesty, what did you need me for?

All while Tim is, in his OWN Loop? Discovering that Sex is actually kinda awesome. And that he should never be left unsupervised. But mostly the first one!

And THIS time? Because I am a generous and benevolent Enabling Jackass? He DEFINITELY steals Dick's "time to threaten Deathstroke" burner phone. And uses it for purposes other then intended.

One stack of info, several shiny new crates of ammo, and showing up in Dick's Robin costume later? He's in Cairo getting his guts destroyed by a supersoldier. The day resets before Slade even breaks a sweat. Tim on the other hand? Passed "fucked incoherent" about three hours back and would probably shoot him, if the dick weren't making him too uncoordinated and stupid.

Nonetheless? Bats pull miracles. And Tim finds Constantine. Who refuses to TOUCH anything of the "learn a life lesson" variety. Since too many deity have it out for him.

But he is just a man.

And finds himself suddenly MUCH more agreeable and willing to try, after being dragged into another room and slammed against a wall. Blown by Batman's kid.

Nothing like face fucking a Robin to motivate a man to greatness, he discovers.

Which? Is when everyone gets their assorted bank of Loop memories. Lot of boredom for a few. Lovey Dovey bonding for others. Life lessons etc.

But?

Oh.

Oh My God.

Kon is panicking. As it filters in. Tim, bro, he can EXPLAIN! Constantine has cut off in amusement. Because, see? This? This right here is why he avoids- blah blah blah- *white noise* *Distant sound of Kon panicking and his Phone trying to explode itself with texts*

Because HOLY SHIT. Tim stares into the middle distance and realizes? So... SO many people jumped at the chance to fuck him. Like... A LOT.

So many.

His head is FULL of getting RAILED. Kon looks like he's gonna cry. Clark is ripping the door off the hinges. He can explain! Kon no longer looks like he's gonna cry. Explain WHAT, Clark?!

Tim fucked...So Many People.

Or was it Fucked By?

Both?

Does.... does he have Boyfriends now? Bootycalls? A harem?

..............whoops?

*arguing over Tim only gets louder as more Heros show up*

-🐼🐼🐼

all of them taking the opportunity to fuck tim- including some people tim's horny brain hadn't even gotten to considered but now had memories of fucking!😭😭

#answered asks #asks #anonymous

[porcelana-r0ta]

The Curse of Sight

[Part 1] Part 2 [Part 3] 

Ao3 Link: [Part 2] (Ao3 link is available only to Ao3 users)

Summary: When Wes Weston meets Tim Drake-Wayne, the dots start connecting. And those dots form a Bat.

Wes wasn’t 100% positive about whether or not Tim was joking when he said to get him a coffee on his next coffee run, but he’s nothing if not a (reluctantly) efficient worker. Well, that, and Jade was always looking for any reason to complain about him, so it’s best to not give her a reason. 

So when he’s sent on his daily coffee run the next day, he orders one trenta Death Wish coffee. He even remembers to request blond espresso since that kind has more caffeine than dark. 

When he makes his way back to WE, he’s able to slip into the elevator after one of the scientists, who pityingly presses the floor button when Wes asks. He thanks her, and is luckily left alone when she gets off twenty floors before him. Blessedly, no one joins after her, and he’s able to get off at Floor 73 in peace. 

He’s immediately assaulted by the caffeine-starved workers just like yesterday, and he luckily doesn’t have to worry about figuring out where to drop off Tim’s coffee, because Rebecca Gray, one of the younger employees who actually treats Wes like he’s human, spills some tea to him, and even presents it in such a way that she’s just helping him with his delivery: “Kid, your mom’s in the Grayson Conference Room with the Waynes and some people from the Board. There was a break-in last night. They’re trying to come up with a press plan. You’ll have to take her and Jade’s order in there. Remember to knock.”

See, Wes didn’t need to know all that. He only needed the last two sentences. But Rebecca is a decent human being who gives other human beings basic human respect, even if they are lowly interns that double as unwilling nepo-babies. He appreciates that about Rebecca. 

“Thanks,” he tells her, and she doesn’t ask questions about why he has three coffees left instead of two. 

“No problem,” she chirps, then rubs her hand roughly through his hair. He has a free hand now, so he swats at her, but she’s already frolicking off to her cubicle. Probably to make memes and then come up with a pitch to his mom on why they should be posted on the Wayne Enterprises official Twitter. 

They were good memes. Wes liked them, anyway. But he’s not sure it’d be very PC of a corporation to post a supposedly “joke” Tweet about giving one million dollars to the first person to kill the Joker and provide proof. 

Wes walks over to the conference room and knocks on the solid mahogany. A few seconds pass, and then a man’s voice calls out, “Come in.” 

Wes opens the door to a group of men and women in suits that are more expensive than any amount of money he will ever have in his bank account at one time surrounding a table that overlooks a flat screen TV. He’s quick to spot his mom and Tim, and unfortunately, quick to spot Jade and Bruce fucking Wayne, who’s, you know, the fucking Batman. 

Wes sweeps his gaze away and smiles nervously, hoping he just looks like a dorky intern who is scared to piss off the Actual Big Boss™. “I have coffee,” he offers, raising the coffee holder a bit higher, as if they couldn’t see from where it was. 

“Thank you, Wes,” his mom says, and he takes that as his cue to enter in farther, distributing the coffee first to his mom, then Jade (who glares at him, ugh), and finally, Tim, who takes it with a look of surprise that forces his eyebrows up his forehead. 

“It’s got every shot of espresso they can legally sell,” he tells him, an anxious smile tugging at his lips a little too hard. He is so stressed right now. 

Tim takes a sip, and then says with the expertise of an addict, “This is blond espresso.”

“Blond has more caffeine, so….” 

Tim looks at him with wide eyes, “You are a coffee god.”

“Ahaha, I’m just the intern,” he says tightly, feeling Bruce Wayne’s gaze bore holes into him. He wonders if anyone else can feel it when he’s just Brucie, or if he’s only noticing because he knows. “Anyway, I’m just gonna….” He gestures to the door, and as he does so, his eyes catch on the screenshot displayed on the wide flatscreen TV. 

It’s clearly been pulled from security cameras, and police have definitely already had a look at it (and the Bats, obviously) if the Waymes are letting the PR team look at it. The camera is surprisingly clear—or maybe not, given the Waynes’ nightlife—and has been zoomed in, so Wes can make out the villain in all their suited up glory, Kevlar(?) and green mask and all, and even their laptop that’s hooked up to some scientist’s desktop computer (if Wes had to wager a guess, anyway). There’s also a shadow behind the villain, indistinct but invariably human. Probably Batman right before interrupting the villain. 

Batman’s definitely smart enough to avoid showing a picture of himself in a cape and cowl to his closest coworkers while in his Brucie persona. 

Huh. That’s odd: the laptop is covered in distinctive stickers. He can even read one of the stickers that quotes an old but widely known fanfiction: “Why couldn’t Satan have made me less beautiful?”

Well, that’s a stupid move. Why go through the trouble of having a whole entire super villain costume made if you’re just going to pull out your personalized laptop? What a dumbass. If Wes were a villain, he’d at least be smart enough to have two laptops: one for business and one for personal use. 

And God, not the My Immortal quote. Embarrassing, really. (And, honestly, a little intimidating. Talk about having no shame!)

Oh, well. It’s not his business. He’s not the super intelligent, super paranoid vigilante. The Bats can figure this one out, thank you very much. 

He walks out of the conference room and rushes to Rebecca’s cubicle, throwing his body onto the stool that he’d brought over one day while helping make memes and then never removed.

“Rebecca, guess what.”

Rebecca jumps, choking on her iced latte. “Christ, kid, what?”

“You have to guess!”

“Uh, I dunno, Jade said that she’s sorry for being a bitch?”

“Maybe when the Bats make friends with the Joker,” he says, and she snorts.

“Wow, already picking up on the Gotham lingo,” she compliments. 

“I had my first mugging a week ago. I think that counts for me being a Gothamite, right?”

“Maybe after your first big time villain attack, kid.” She shakes her head at him, then asks, “Okay, so what is it?”

“They had some security camera screenshot in the conference room,” he tells her excitedly. “The villain who broke in was on it. They had this laptop to hack some computer, and—God, this is hilarious—they had a My Immortal sticker on their laptop.”

Rebecca’s face flushes in delight and abhorrence all at once, “Holy outdated Internet references, Batman, you’re kidding.” 

“I’m absolutely not, Rebecca!” he insists. “I saw it, clear as day! Brucie Wayne doesn’t skimp on his security. It was right there in print: Why couldn’t Satan make me less beautiful?”

“Dear God.” She shakes her head, then asks, “Aren’t you a little young to know the sacred texts?” 

“You’re never too young for culture, Rebecca.” 

She nods sagely, “You have a point, kid. You have a point.” She clears her throat. “Hey, do you wanna help me with a project?” 

“What kind of project?”

“A pitch to your mom to convince her to get Wayne Enterprises an official TikTok account. It’s criminal that we don’t have one yet! Did you know that the New York City branch has one? We’re the headquarters! Why don’t we have one? It doesn’t make any sense!” 

It’s Wes’s turn to nod, “Yes, that is a grievous mistake. We need to make social media amends, and quickly. Before someone becomes a social media villain and attacks corporations that don’t have TikToks.” 

“You’re being sarcastic—”

“I’m really not—”

“But you shouldn’t joke about that in Gotham because it’ll happen if you speak it.”

Wes wants to laugh that notion off as paranoia, but then he remembers Desiree. 

“Okay, you have a point.” He knocks his hand on her head, “Knock on wood.” 

“That’s it, brat. You’re fired from my project.” She sticks her tongue out at him. 

“Wait, no. I take it back. I take it back!” 

Rebecca spins her swivel chair around, leaning back and humming, “Hmmm, maybe…. But it’ll cost you.” 

“I wanna right this social media injustice, Rebecca. Please!” 

“Okay, you’ve convinced me. But!” She raises a finger when he looks too excited, “You have to agree to be in the first TikTok.” 

Well, now he’s wary. 

He wrinkles his nose, “I don’t know about that.”

“Then no social media for you.” Her voice is a taunting singsong, and something in Wes breaks. 

“Ugh, fine. I’ll do it.”

An evil, smug grin cracks through Rebecca’s face, and Wes’s stomach curdles. What did he just agree to?

“Excellent,” she says. “Then let’s get started.”

An hour into their project, the meeting in the conference room comes to an end. Wes knows this because it’s when Jade decides to butt her head in his business.

“Weston,” she barks as soon as she sees him crouching next to Rebecca while they debate the merits of “Connecting to the Youth” as a topic for just one slide or multiple. “Stop distracting Rebecca from her work. I need you to deliver a file to IT.”

“Wes isn’t distracting me,” Rebecca politely corrects Jade, even though she shouldn’t because Jade doesn’t like her much, either. “I needed a second opinion on—”

“Another meme?” Jade asks spitefully. “That’s a waste of company time, Reb—”

But Jade is interrupted by the grand appearance of Timothy Drake, who waltzes up and asks, “Something wrong, Mrs. Oswald?” 

“Nothing, really.” Jade is quick to become all smiles. “Weston here is just interrupting Rebecca’s fine work.” 

“I heard something about a meme?” He raises an eyebrow, and Wes has to smother giggles. Red Robin is standing here, asking after a meme. 

“Oh, yes,” Rebecca jumps at the chance to discuss her memes, which are only accepted to be posted on the company Twitter about 25% of the time. She deftly switches from the slideshow tab to Canva, where she has a meme ready to go. 

Wes is impressed with her resolve. 

“As you can see, sir,” she gestures to the computer, where a meme in the Drake format is shown, but with Batman in his place. Instead of the bottom Batman being accepting of the proposal to the right, both images of Batman are grimacing. “I am using a classic format, but stylized to fit our very own vigilantes. As he is the Batman, he doesn’t really smile, so it’s just the same picture of Batman frowning like an angst lord. The top text reads, ‘When the Batburger is out of jokerized fries,’ and the bottom text reads, ‘But their ice cream machine is running.’”

Batburger is Gotham’s “not like other girls” version of McDonald’s, Wes has discovered. 

Tim cracks a laugh at the meme in front of him, and the light dies from Jade’s eyes. Wes feels just a little warmer for it, and not guilty at all. 

“That’s pretty good,” he compliments. “You think you could photoshop an ice cream cone on the Batman on the bottom?”

Rebecca lets out a gasp of delight, “Genius! That’s why you’re the CEO, sir!”

Tim laughs, his eyes crinkling, and he says, “Photoshop it in, then send it to Ms. Rolland. I want to see it on WE’s Twitter tonight.” 

Rebecca gives a two-fingered salute, then swivels back around to face her computer. 

“Wes, can I speak with you for a second? I won’t take long.” Tim may make it sound like a request, but he’s the CEO, so it’s more of an order, and Wes stands on uneasy legs as Jade storms off without a word to her boss. 

“Yeah, sure,” he agrees, and follows Tim. 

Was I obvious? Do they know that I know? Surely not, right? I mean, I’ve been in Gotham for barely three weeks. Who figures out that kind of thing in that kind of time? Who figures out that someone has figured it out in that kind of time?

Wes is about to work himself into a panic attack when Tim stops at the conference room door and holds it open for him. He gulps. Is Bruce Wayne waiting behind the door to question him? Fuuuuuuck me.

He crosses the threshold and has to hold in a sigh of relief, as well as keep from just straight up collapsing to the ground. No Brucie Wayne. No Batman confrontation. 

“W-what did you need to talk about?” Wes asks as Tim steps in after him, the door clicking shut.

Tim pauses to collect his thoughts, then says, “I wanted to ask you about Jade Oswald. She seems… aggressive with her coworkers.”

Peace, I knew thee too quickly. 

“She’s just intense,” Wes says, even though he’d kind of like to see Jade get some HR hell rained on her. “And stressed. And I kinda got this job through my mom, so she sees me as this kid who doesn’t deserve to be here when she probably had to, like, work for everything, and I’m just, like, here because my mom wants to keep an eye on me so I don’t get mugged. Again.” 

Oh, sure. Great idea! Bring up the mugging! Definitely not suspicious at all! Maybe I would be stupid enough to bring a personalized laptop with me on an intelligence heist.

Tim’s face is concerned. Wes would applaud his acting skills if he wasn’t more stressed than a 15th Century serf in Russia. “Mugged? Are you alright?”

“Oh, yeah, totally. I was rescued by Red Robin. That part was kinda cool, honestly.” Good, good, give him subtle compliments so if he does ever find out, he can remember that you think he’s cool and will hopefully give you pity. 

Tim still doesn’t look reassured, and his instinct is to tell him about wacky Amity Park hijinks, like when he joined Fenton’s teen militia to take down Youngblood and save all the adults, but he clamps down on that hard. Don’t talk about Amity to a fucking Bat, you dumbass.

“You’re sure?” His voice is soft and caring, and Wes suddenly feels suffocated. 

“U-uh, yeah. I’m sure. I appreciate you asking, though!” 

“Of course,” Tim says. “I’ve had my fair share of Gotham scares.”

“I bet,” Wes laughs. This is safer territory. “You grew up here, right? You probably know all the protocol for living here.”

“Ohhh, yeah,” Tim joins him in laughter, his tone fond for the cesspool he knows so well. It’s something only Gothamites have perfected because most people with common sense react with revulsion to this filth they call a city. “Word of advice? Get a gas mask.”

“Mom has that covered, believe me.” Wes scoffs. “Mom went and had mine fitted. I get the concern, but wow.”

“Bruce did the same to me when I first moved in,” Tim says, and Wes doesn’t ask why the Drakes didn’t already have one fitted for him since they were also rich. There’s a reason why Brucie Wayne adopts every black haired child he sees, after all. “That’s just what parents do, I guess.”

The good ones, Wes thinks grimly to himself. 

“Haha, yeah. That’s true.” He thinks of Rebecca, then thinks, Well, in for a penny…. “Hey, me and Rebecca were wondering—why doesn’t Wayne Enterprises have a TikTok?”

Tim blinks, caught off guard, then answers, “Well, we don’t really use social media for traditional advertisement, I suppose. Usually, we do social media sponsorships with influencers…. Huh. I guess I never really thought of it? I know the New York branch has an unofficial account that we haven’t shut down since it’s been rather harmless.”

That makes sense. The teenager who spends his nights parkouring across the rooftops of Gotham is too sleep deprived to remember the marketing potential of TikTok. 

“Right,” Wes says. “Well, Rebecca is working on a pitch to my mom about it. She’s, like, super into it. She has at least a dozen scripts written for the first TikToks she wants to post, and has a bunch of emails drafted to get some departments in on it. She says it’s important to humanize a company before posting ads so we have an audience who is sympathetic to the company. Which, like. Wow. Kinda messed up. But good business tactics.” 

“Huh.” Tim blinks again, and Wes is starkly aware of how wired but tired he must be. “Okay. Have Rebecca go ahead and make the account, but keep it private, and film a first TikTok. Send it to me before posting it. I’ll have filming equipment sent down. Work on it with her, yeah?” 

“O-okay! I can do that,” Wes agrees. “Are we sending this through email, or…?”

“Right.” Tim nods, then grabs a sheet of paper from a notepad left behind on the conference table. He pulls a pen out from his suit jacket and scribbles something down, tears the page out, and then hands it to Wes. 

It’s his work email. And also his personal phone. And Wes knows it’s Tim’s personal phone number because the number has “personal #” written next to it. 

Cool cool cool cool cool. No need to freak out. It isn’t like Tucker would kill him to have this opportunity or anything. It isn’t like he has the personal number of the literal Red Robin superhero or anything. 

“Oh, thanks!” is all Wes can squeak out, and Tim sends him a charming smile. 

“Today was just luck. Text me next time you’re getting coffee so you know where to meet me.” 

“Will do!” Wes agrees, and Tim nods, opening the door for Wes to exit, then follows him through. 

They say a quick goodbye, and Wes beelines for Rebecca. 

“You were in there for a while,” she comments, not looking up from her screen when he collapses onto his stool. She’s currently manipulating a photo of a Batbucks ice cream cone. “Did you two make out? I won’t rat you out. I may be in my twenties but I’m still cool like a teen.”

“No!” Wes blushes redder than his hair. “And that was, like, the lamest sentence ever. You’re lame. I regret scoring a Wayne Enterprises TikTok account for you now.”

This tidbit of knowledge rips Rebecca from her computer screen. “You’re kidding!”

He grins widely, “Nope! Our CEO says that you can go ahead and make an account, but keep it private. He says that he’ll send filming equipment down, and that he wants to personally approve of the video before posting.” 

Rebecca lets out a squeal of excitement, “You’re the best intern ever! Does your mom have to send you back to Illinois in August? Are you sure we can’t keep you?”

“Sorry, but I’m in high demand.” 

“Clearly. Ugh, you’re a little genius.” She looks at the meme on her screen. “Wow, this is boring now that I know we’ll be getting a TikTok.” 

“Tim wants to see it by the end of the day,” he reminds her. 

“Eugh. I knooowww, but still. Boring.” She sighs. “Do you think Batman is more of a vanilla or a chocolate kind of guy?” 

Before figuring out that Batman was technically one of his Actual Big Bosses™, Wes might have cracked a joke about someone who dresses up in a BDSM fursuit to fight crime having no chance of being vanilla. With his current knowledge, Wes winces, and says, “Oh, vanilla all the way. He doesn’t have the creativity for anything else. I mean, the Bat Signal? The Batmobile? C’mon.” 

Rebecca nods like this is totally rational reasoning, “You’re right, you’re right. Besides, I can’t spend the time on changing the ice cream now. Now, we have a TikTok to plan.” 

And suddenly, Wes remembers his promise to be in the very first TikTok that Wayne Enterprises posts. 

“Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes.”

--------

Tag List:

@blankliferain @amercurio @gin2212 @starscreamlover @hoarder-of-gender

If you want to be added to the Tag List just ask in the replies :)

#dp x dc #dc x dp #dp x dc crossover #danny phantom #wes weston #wesley weston #batman #dc #this was literally supposed to just be a one shot but here we are #this is probably gonna be wes/tim btw #stalker buddies au #the curse of sight

[twistedtummies2]

Year of the Bat - Number 16

Welcome to Year of the Bat! In honor of Kevin Conroy, Arleen Sorkin, and Richard Moll, I’m counting down my Top 31 Favorite Episodes of “Batman: The Animated Series” throughout this January. We’ve reached the halfway point of the countdown! TODAY’S EPISODE QUOTE: “Fear’s a prison, you see, and I’ve just broken out!” Number 16 is…Never Fear.

Out of all the Scarecrow’s appearances in B:TAS, this episode from the TNBA era is generally considered to be the best. It’s one of several stories taken directly from the comics, too, as the episode is (somewhat loosely) based on the comic tale “Fear For Sale.” The original comic was published in 1987, and was chiefly created by writer Mike W. Barr, and artist Alan Davis. While that story is really, REALLY freaking good – seriously, one of the Top 5 best Scarecrow comics, in my opinion, without question – I honestly think the Animated Series adaptation is even better. Not only that, but in some ways – despite the fact no one actually dies in this story (though several come awfully close) – I would argue the cartoon is darker than said comic, as well. Wrap your head around that! The premise focuses on the Scarecrow returning to Gotham City, presumably after a long dormancy, with a brand new form of his Fear Toxin: instead of the usual method of installing fear in people, causing them to hallucinate violent apparitions and have horrifying visions of their greatest phobias and traumas, this new gimmick TAKES AWAY people’s fear. Now, one may wonder, why is that such a bad thing? Well, here’s the thing: fear is a rational human response, intended to keep us out of danger. We run away from things that scare us, or stay alert for trouble in times of distress, for self-preservation’s sake; we avoid doing certain things at least partially because fear reminds us of the consequences of those actions. If you REMOVE fear…then a person has no restraints, no cares, and quite possibly no conscience. This is where things get interesting: while going undercover to try and figure out Scarecrow’s plans, Bruce gets a dose of the Anti-Fear Toxin himself. Batman becomes impulsive, thrillseeking…and, most alarming of all, homicidal. It’s therefore up to Robin to keep Batman from going down a path he must not travel, while also trying to stop the Scarecrow’s newest bid for power. The first thing most people talk about with this episode is Scarecrow himself, and for good reason. The character is given a brand new voice, provided by Jeffrey Combs for this outing, as well as a brand new look, which most people agree is far superior to the one from the first three seasons. While the Scarecrow is great in those earlier seasons, I do agree with the apparent majority that the version found in “Never Fear” is a superior rendition, simply because he’s much more creepy to behold and to hear. I was never really scared of the Scarecrow himself in his earlier outings, but this version is a whole new story. The uniqueness of his plan in this story is also worth commending, whether it’s based on an already-published comic or not. However, I think a lot of people underestimate what a good episode this is for Batman and Robin, as well. I may or may not have said this in an earlier entry, but I actually preferred Tim Drake as Robin over Dick Grayson, at least in the Animated Series. This episode is a great example of why. Robin really takes the spotlight and initiative here, as it’s ultimately really Tim that saves the day. There’s this great scene that I absolutely love, where Batman – under the influence of Scarecrow’s toxin – tries to convince Tim, after Robin ties him up to keep him from hurting people or running into trouble, to let him go. Kevin Conroy’s performance is so convincing, it almost tricks the viewer, as well as Robin himself, but Tim doesn’t take the bait. The two really do feel like partners here, in a lot of ways, and it’s a great tale for both. Whether you love it for the heroes or the villain, “Never Fear” is arguably the pinnacle of Scarecrow storytelling in the Animated Series. I say “arguably” because of one other episode I’ll get to later in the countdown…but that’s another story.

Tomorrow we move into the Top 15! Hint: “Kids these days. No respect.”

#list #countdown #best #favorites #new year's special #year of the bat #top 31 btas episodes #btas #batman: the animated series #tnba #the new batman adventures #dcau #dc #batman #animation #tv #number 16 #never fear #scarecrow #jonathan crane #tim drake #robin #bruce wayne

[psychologeek]

You offered to do some fic recs...I was wondering if you had any angsty DC favorites you could share? gen & finished, please :]

Yes, I have!!!

[if you like my recs, PLZ let me know :) .]

[also - my ask box is still open!]

So, first of all - basically everything written by envysparkler (I started, and figured out half of the fics on my recs were written by envy)

Hurt/Comfort

ghost story by envysparkler

Jason Todd dies in Ethiopia. Well. Kind of

outlast the rain by ScarlettSwordMoon

During a routine patrol, Dick’s glove malfunctions and he almost falls to his death. Bruce redesigns them. Problem solved, right? Only Dick is refusing to take the new pair. AKA Trauma is irrational, but love endures all.

Day 4: Dick Grayson’s Eldest Daughter Syndrome & “Catch me.”

For the City Sweetly Whispers  by Drag0nst0rm

The first time Bruce hears the city speak, he thinks he's losing his mind.

By the time Gotham's killed Dick's parents and forced a nine year old into the Robin suit, he only wishes that were true.

Tim Drake: Myth and Legend by siren_of_the_ocean

2 fics, both very good

between a rock and a hard place by envysparkler

Tim curled up in a ball and shook with several, near-hyperventilating breaths. Jason clenched his hands into fists.

“Hood?” came Nightwing’s tentative check-in, “How’s everything going?”

I’m trapped under a building, he didn’t say. Tim thinks I’m going to murder him, he didn’t say. Get me out of here before I claw my own skin off, he didn’t say.

Vulpes by Snow_Wyvern (warning -it really scared me! It's like the old Grimm's tales)

No human is permitted to see the Animal Court. But Tim, a feral, too-small thing, with tangled hair and teeth that yet remember how to rend, who scrambles about on four legs as often as two because there is no one to lift him to his feet - Tim, who wandered into the nighttime woods and has no one to call him back to the light of human homes - why would the forest have any reason to think him a man-thing?

Liminal Space by Calamityjim

Bruce's habit of collecting strays is not limited by dimension.

Or

When Young Justice Batman comes across an angsty, seemingly abandoned by his Batman Tim Drake, he decides to step up to the plate and parent the crap out of him.

Words: 77,186 (it's a series, this is the first fic).

muzzled by envysparkler, Periazhad

Tim, bound and gagged, listening to a group of people haggle over his fate, is hard-pressed to think of how this situation can get worse.

Then Hood walks in.

reset by Valkirin

Black Mask hires Circe to keep Red Hood out of his way for a week. Circe's spell will only last a week and she doesn't think Batman will notice or care that she placed a time-limited memory spell on a minor criminal.

Fifteen-year-old Jason Todd wakes up in a future he doesn't understand.

fault lines tremble under my glass house by paperxcrowns

In a moment of clarity, Tim remembers his emergency button. He remembers patrol, and he remembers a gang and a shootout.

He uses his free hand to fumble around until he manages to find the chest piece and press the emergency button. His vision is fuzzing at the edges and the last thing he sees is a dark figure leaning over him, a gun pointed at his face.

Well fuck, is his last thought before everything fades to black.

A Recipe for Disaster by  Calypso_Rambles, JUBE514

Titan AU. Red hood came to hurt the baby bird, but find him cooking and grieving his father. FEELS.

Under A Parent's Wing by IzzyMRDB

When Tim found out that Dick Grayson was a gymnastics instructor in Bludhaven, he quickly signed up. After all, learning gymnastics from The Nightwing himself is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Dick Grayson is more concerned at the obvious signs of child abuse he sees in one of his students.

AKA

Dick Grayson, as a childcare worker, is a mandated reporter who knows how to recognize child abuse in his students. Tim Drake, after a lifetime of fear and confusion, learns to trust adults.

Detainment by DragonflyxParodies

"Do you beat your children?” Bruce asks, voice flat and odd in a way unlike any Hal has ever heard before, and Hal’s blood runs cold, and –

Other Batman’s jaw clenches. He does not answer immediately.

The whole fucking League visibly draws back.

In which Bat has instituted very strict measures for handling alternate versions of himself, and the Justice League finds out why

Family Ties by Wafflesssss

Prepare for a cry.

At ages 15, 12, and 9, Dick, Jason, and Tim had found a home in Wayne Manor. Never mind the fact that Dick was the only one Bruce had legally adopted, and never mind that Tim and Jason's parents had no idea where they spent their time(not that either set cared). The three were brothers, and Bruce was maybe sort of like a dad, and it was perfect.

And then Wayne Manor goes up in flames, and only the kids make it out.

Four years later, Dick is angry, Jason is a vigilante, and Tim is a ghost. When Dick has an encounter with the Red Hood, it sets off a chain of events that could bring all three brothers back together. But, for some reason, Batman has taken an interest in each of them. Why?

I Have Come Back To You Broken (take me home) by LylaRivers

His Replacement stares at him with glassy, unfocused eyes, his begging for mercy long since silenced. Jason doesn’t dare let himself think about how the Replacement had pleaded for Robin to save him.

Mēnin Aeide by ApatheticAthena

Batman has taken personal time off from the Justice League when they capture the notorious Gotham crime lord Red Hood. The league thinks he's just another crazed criminal and Jason is doing absolutely nothing to dissuade them of that notion. In fact, he may be making things worse.

A New Day by Sparkypants

Freshly resurrected, Jason comes back to Gotham with a plan for vengeance and zero interest in reconciling with his family.

Things don't quite work out how he anticipated.

Or;

A different take on Jason coming back to the family.

A Hero Lost by Cdelphiki

When Jason Todd died on that fateful April day, Bruce was tempted to just... stop. To let the world know he was Batman, and that it'd just lost a hero in Jason Todd.

And so he did.

It didn't keep him from mourning the death of his son.

Or: Bruce quits being Batman in the wake of Jason's death, tells the world who he is, then retires to Montana and slowly finds healing. And when Jason comes back to life six months later, and Talia tells him 'you remain unavenged,' he can't find any evidence to support that, so he goes home.

Code of Silence by JHSC (TW: lots of triggers! Mentioned CSA)

Willis Todd doesn’t die in prison. That doesn’t change much, until it does.

Don't All Birds Belong in Boxes? by Maladaptive_Daydreamer

scream out my memories as if i was never there by CosmoKid

Tim realizes that the Red Hood is Jason Todd and makes a snap decision: Tim Drake needs to disappear.

that awful sound by MasterOfMyFateCaptainOfMySoul

Dick Grayson is fed up of losing people. So when the Joker kills Jason, kills his brother, he doesn’t let it slide. It changes quite a few things.

Leaving You For the Last Time (Warwick Avenue) by unpossible

A lot of different ways it can go

(Jason, Trauma, and life)

Other recs:

Jason Todd: The Not-So-Outlaw  by  GoAwayOlivia

Jason Todd isn't what Batman made him, he isn't what the Joker made him, he isn't what the League of Assassins made him, and he isn't what the Lazarus Pit made him. He's his own person and he's taking himself back, one home renovation at a time. Also he might just make friends with the people who are supposed to be his brothers while he's at it.

Contagious by d_aia

Jim didn’t know it, until Maggie barged in, opening his door with such force that it bounced off the wall and broke a glass panel. Whatever he’d wanted object was lost the moment she said, “Somebody killed the Joker.” His first thought was that he expected her to tell him the city was melting down, not to give good news.

His second was, ‘Is the killer worse than Joker?’

*

The Joker's dead. Now what?

(13k words)

Batman and Robin(s) (and Batgirl) (and Oracle) by IzzyMRDB

Simultaneous Robins AU where Bruce is just juggling being a single dad who loves his children very very much.

Ain't No Compass, Ain't No Map by ebjameston for Limnaia, SparrowsNest

A CPS agent gets sent to investigate a tip that Tim Drake has been abandoned by his parents and is living with the Red Hood. The CPS agent leaves with no Tim Drake, a date with Red Hood's lieutenant, and an intern who's promising to fix the IT systems at his office.

It's a weird day for Theo.

There Will Be Darkness Again by dukeaubergine

One of the BEST.

The Toxic Masculinity of a "Hero" by Todd Peters by orphan_account

When Jason gets his newest paper prompt in his Intro to Women and Gender Studies class, he knows just who he wants to write about.

Like Going Through Hell on a Sunday by probablyanxious

Jason Todd has to bring Damian to Gotham for his protection, meets Billy along the way and just doesn't know how he's supposed to keep these kids safe while dealing with his trauma (aka killing that damn clown)

#batman #jason todd #dc au #DC #fic recs #fic rec #fanfics recommendation #batfam #tim drake #red robin #robin #bruce wayne #dick grayson #nightwing #gotham #angst #and more #fluff #red hood

[lycanthrope6221]

Sucide Squad: Kill the Justice League

Character Rant

Hi there here’s my thoughts on all the current operatives in Sucide Squad: Kill the Justice League. I’ll probably do another one of these for the Joker when he releases next month

Disclaimer, I’m a artist not a writer I suck I at writing and I really just wanted to get my thoughts down and put them out there also I’m writing this a after playing the game last night and my memory isn’t 100% I might have missed some things but oh well.

Spoilers!!! mostly just for gameplay I don’t really bring up the story.

Tw: Guns and violence

Harley Quinn:

Character-Loving her dialogue right now. Her voice fits well(duh it’s Tara strong), she has funny dialogue and unhinged dialogue she doesn’t feel forced or anything. I’m happy she’s moved on from the Joker and is trying to live her best life despite the bomb planted into her skull.

Movement- I’m going to be completely honest and say I think I might need to redo the tutorial for the bat grapple gun. All I do is fall…. Beside that it’s fun to swing around and grapple to building my brain keeps defaulting to Spider-Man 2 controls lol.

Combat- I know you can equip any weapon for any character but I’m just sticking to the type of gun they started with so my Harley’s only getting SMG’s and revolvers. I like beating aliens to a bloody pulp with Harley’s bat and I love revolvers in games like there so much fun to use.

Deadshot:

Character- So far it looks like Floyd is basically the voice of reason for the team. He has prior experience to mercenary work and it shows in the way he communicates with Waller i think this is a nice detail. He brings up his daughter sometimes and I really hope he gets to see her preferably not in alien invaded metropolis.

Movement- at first I struggled with the jet pack but after a couple stressful missions I finally got used to it. I don’t really have much to say about it, it’s a jetpack. Blast off woo hoo.

Combat- My Deadshot currently has a a sniper rifle and assault rifle. I’m so happy that the sniper rifles in this game aren’t heavy snipers and don’t take 10 years to reload cause I would be so so dead. I just got my first notorious weapon and it’s Black Mask sniper rifle and the floating back skulls were a jump-scare at first but honestly it gives the gun character.

Captain Boomerang-

Character- As a Tim drake fan I apologize for what I’m about to say. He’s slowly becoming harder and harder to hate. The voice actor and writers are just doing to good of a job also shot out to the animators whoever did facial animations for this game deserves double pay. He’s a dick and he sucks but in a funny way. Like ok Boomer rang why would you put a bomb into a child’s head? Yes that child is an omega level Metahuman but still! I would push him down a flight of stairs but I would also throw him down a granola bar.

Movement- When I first saw the trailer I thought this was “just revived from darkest night and now I have powers” Boomerang but no its some speed force copy cat gauntlet I think this was a good decision. I don’t hate his traversal it’s honestly pretty fun to throw boomerangs and go fast. Gotta go fast…

Combat- I love Boomerangs melee attack I love smacking people with a boomerang. I have a sniper rifle and a shotgun equipped. Shotguns are so much fun in this and doing the quick time thingys is really fun with them 10/10 shotgun lover 4lifers.

King Shark:

Character: King shark is such a neat humanoid shark. At first I thought he was just MCU Drax the destroyer in a different font but even though they both share a lot of tropes King Sharks love for learning reminds me more of Strong from fallout. I really like his design too, we don’t see a lot of 3d humanoid sharks out there and they nailed it.

Movement: King Shark uses his claws and glowing shark powers to jump high and run fast. I can’t really tell but I think he may be the fastest character. It might just be how easy he is to use but I don’t really notice any limitations like the others/its not screaming in my face like with dead shots jetpack over heating or Harley’s bat drone having a cool down. It’s also very cool to run around as a giant shark jumping off builds and plowing through crowds of aliens.

Combat- My King Shark is currently equipped with a heavy machine gun and a shotgun. The heavy gun is fine and kinda fun to use it pairs really well with his melee. King sharks melee attack is his 2 daggers that can cut through people and launch them into the sky so you can riddle them with bullets. That’s my favorite combo and you can do that with every character but King Sharks just seems cooler.

#ssktjl #sucide squad: kill the justice league #deadshot #harley…. #harlequin #captain boomerang #sorry tim #king shark #dc comics #lycan talks

[nibordereht]

What we deserve

Summary:

When Jason catches Tim smoking on a rooftop in the middle of the night, he immediately knows he has a long conversation ahead of him with his little brother. He just didn't expect it to be that kind of conversation.

What we deserve (Jason Todd & Tim Drake) by anyrobin in AO3

There was a rooftop. It was on the top floor of a corporate building on the far side of the industrial part of town. It wasn't high enough to stand out among the other buildings, but it wasn't so low that anyone could be seen swinging their feet over the edge of the roof at night. It was not the favorite of any Gotham vigilante, but it was the one most often visited by Timothy Drake-Wayne when he wanted to escape without any capes stopping to pry or any strangers asking him if he was going to commit suicide from there.

Between his fingers he twirled a cigarette as if it were a pencil and he was in the middle of an exam, concentrating and calculating his next move. With the other hand, his thumb scraped the lighter switch, making a click sound every now and then. But his eyesight wasn't particularly focused on either move, just lost in the darkness beneath his feet among the Gotham buildings, dirty and cold like his own body at that moment.

His face was decorated with a colorful bruise between his lower eyelid and his cheekbone, so marked that not even the deep dark circles under his eyes (which were a fixed part of his face) could conceal it. He was pale, he always was; the only reason his lips weren't discolored or purple with the cold outside was because they were still soaked in the blood that continued to ooze out every time he pulled the cut on the side of his lower lip. And all that was even without mentioning the scratches on his cheek that made him look like he had dragged his face against the pavement. And his clothes, oh, anyone who saw him in them wouldn't doubt that he was some guy off the street instead of the son of a billionaire.

In short, he had been beaten up.

Smoking wouldn't solve any of his problems, but maybe doing some kind of damage to himself would help him ignore the damage other people had done to him. Besides, he had never really tried it, there was a tiny part inside him that found the new experience exciting. Though he was still too overwhelmed by the thrill of trying something new for the first time to overpower the spiral he was entering.

He stopped fiddling and lit the cigarette.

Tim made the motion to bring it to his mouth but stopped when he had it within an inch of his lips. He gave a deep inhale with his mouth and felt his whole body shiver, allowing himself to connect with the cold that enveloped him after several minutes. He groaned a little as the night breeze hit against the part of his neck that wasn't covered by the denim jacket he was wearing.

"Screw it," he muttered.

The cigar pad was pressed between his lips and he inhaled the smoke as the first pinch of butt began to fall from the other side. He held his breath for a while and then let it all out with a cough. He couldn't help but grimace when he stopped coughing.

"Not very good the first time, is it?"

Tim jumped. He couldn't help but have the instant thought that Batman would be disappointed in him for allowing his ramblings to make him let his guard down. His only consolation was that whoever had scared him had once had the same trainer.

"Jason...," coughed Tim.

Jason grimaced. Probably displeased when spittle splattered near him as he settled into Tim's side. The red helmet clattered with a heavy thud against the floor on the other side and only then did Tim pause to recognize the Red Hood uniform his brother was wearing, however, he didn't regret calling him by name as the older man wasn't even wearing his domino mask.

The smoke was still billowing between them, and the cigarette smell couldn't be hidden, even if it was worth a try. Tim didn't bother to put the cigarette out, but Jason stole it from his hand before he could even think about taking another puff. He sucked on it and stubbed it out against the rooftop floor as soon as he let go of the smoke from the first puff.

Tim was frozen. Somewhat lost. It wasn't in his plans to have company. He didn't want it. He just wanted to sit around, mope for a while and then pretend nothing had happened. It was better that way. He had always dealt with his problems the same way: by pretending they were never there in the first place.

Jason seemed oblivious to his deplorable state, or at least he was still so focused on the night view as he was while smoking that he didn't bother to examine the cigar's original owner just yet, prioritizing taunting him first.

Tim forced himself to calm down and concentrated on his shoes again. He was brought back to reality abruptly, so he was still too stunned to make any excuses even before the accusation came, so he just stayed silent and waited until Jason said something. Of course, he actually wished his brother would just go away without saying anything more. He'd rather be ratted out than lectured before he could finish processing his bad mood.

"So the perfect son is finally entering the rebellious age," Jason joked, still not turning to look Tim in the face.

"Dick thinks I've had it," he said, struggling to remain composed. "When I escaped to Europe to find Bruce."

As much as he wanted to remain appeased, there was actually a hint of venom in his words. He had risked his life on another continent to search for his time-lost father and Dick (though he was grateful for it) remembered his grueling journey, where he even lost a major organ, as his rebellious stage.

Nevertheless, Jason laughed.

"Dick dismisses any unauthorized travel as an act of rebellion because taking his things and leaving after a fight is what he would do being rebellious," he explained. Although there was a complaint in his tone, you could still feel some fondness in his words.

Tim could not refute anything so silence enveloped them again.

He wasn't sure what to say. Had Jason given him a pass to start complaining about his older brother? Was that what he really wanted? In truth, while he often needed to find a moment to rant about his brothers, this wasn't the occasion. Besides, he already had Conner for that. He didn't need to complain about his brothers to themselves.

"Okay, birdie," Jason began. Tim squeezed his eyes shut and avoided him as the older man settled back to face him. "You want to tell me what the hell happened to you?

Because you look like shit." Tim snorted.

"Five dollars to the swear jar," he muttered. Jason squinted his eyes. Tim opened his eyes and sighed, "Fine. Occupational hazard?"

"I saw you yesterday and your face didn't look like a plum, Timbo, and I know you weren't on patrol today. Nop. Try again."

"I was mugged," Tim tried, firmer than before.

A normal person probably would not have been able to detect the lie. Timothy's face was serious and his eyes did not falter when the words came out of his mouth. However, Jason had not only learned to read him well, he had been trained by the world's greatest detective himself.

"Last try. Either we have this conversation, or you'll have it with Dick because he's home and he'll want to hug you the moment he knows you're under the same roof."

Tim hesitated between clicking his tongue and sighing. Unfortunately, he was right. Right now, it was in Tim's best interest to have an ally in the mansion. He wouldn't be able to hide out in one of his safe houses long enough to not run into a bat as a civilian again before his injuries wouldn't show, and once home he'd have Dick or Alfred on him, the former to get an explanation and the latter to force him to have a medical checkup. He didn't need to burden himself any further. And, if he had to be honest, deep down he enjoyed chatting with Jason. Even though some resentment over, you know, the assassination attempts clung to his heart, he would always be his childhood hero, and who wouldn't like their hero to show the slightest concern for them.

He finally turned his face to Jason and made a childish grimace, scrunching up his whole face.

"I'm just not doing well back in school," he confessed.

Jason fell silent for a second and then gave him a small empathetic smile.

"If this is what you look like after coming back for two weeks, I have to agree with you."

A slight relief settled in Tim's chest after hearing his brother's response. He didn't need anyone jumping on him with a lecture right away or questioning his decisions and coping methods when he was down to his shit. He wanted to disappear for a while, not be forced to keep his feet on the ground.

A little over a year after returning from his wilderness journey and retrieving Bruce Wayne from the time stream, his father had decided it was time for him to resume a normal life as a civilian and enjoy worrying about who to ask to the prom instead of how to increase the stock of a multi-million dollar firm . Of course, when he wasn't worrying about saving Gotham City's citizens' asses from clown-clad sociopaths, scarecrows with dangerous fumes, or mobsters with family problems. Typical stuff.

Tim had no choice but to accept. He forced himself to see this as an opportunity to shut the old men who insisted on calling him incapable for dropping out of school and decide if he really wanted to continue running a company where he had only risen straight to the top thanks to nepotism and desperation.

But retaking your senior year at nineteen, when there were none of your friends or acquaintances left taking the grade, being practically a celebrity who was even part of a teen engagement scandal and with malicious rumors running rampant (not to mention being a nerd who looked like one), didn't help your case . Which was an understatement to say that high school was kicking his ass. Sometimes literally, like today.

"You want to tell me what happened?" demanded Jason. His tone became lighter, even as he tried to sound deliberately nonchalant. In other times, Tim would have been upset that he was being treated the way they, the vigilantes, would treat a victim, but today?

Today Tim was so tired.

"I got beat up," his voice cracked a little at the end so he cleared his throat, coughing a little from the lingering sick feeling the tobacco left in his mouth. "Can't you say it for yourself, wonder boy?"

" Former boy wonder, boy wonder," he corrected.

"Same here. Former. " Tim allowed himself a small smile. Jason also laughed slowly.

"However," he resumed, "you must be getting rusty if they managed to make you this ugly. And you're ugly enough as it is."

Tim rolled his eyes, but the need to release some tension forced him to let out a long sigh next instead of focusing on the banter. Then he took a breath to gather his strength to keep talking. He really didn't feel like going around in circles so much and having to keep the bad memories inside.

"It's just... It's harder than I thought it would be. I mean, I wanted to just go, pay attention when I felt like it, worry about getting through classes, and go home; I don't feel able to resume the teenage life that Dick, and now Bruce, want me to have. Not after..." he waved his hands at him and around him, not knowing how to express himself, "all this time, I guess. I never spent too much time in school in the first place. You know, it's not like anyone ever cared much about my attendance, either. When B stopped by to bother me about school it was because he wanted to keep me away from some dangerous cases, and I always chose Robin's stuff over my civilian friends... I didn't even have many, anyway."

Jason made the motion to interrupt him, he wasn't sure if it was because he was starting to ramble or if he wanted to tease him, but he needed to blurt it all out before he chickened out.

"I know what I look like, Jay. I'm not very tall," Jason raised an eyebrow and Tim nudged him, "...I'm short . I don't grow as much muscle as you and Bruce, and my clothes just make me look skinnier and smaller. Even if I pass P.E. with flying colors, I couldn't hit back without drawing attention to myself; not because of my last name, but because of my looks. And you know, coming back to school older than most and looking smaller than everyone else, after being orphaned, adopted by the most famous man in town, and running an international conglomerate, doesn't exactly make you popular ."

Jason snorted. Yeah, if there was anyone who could understand Tim being a weirdo at school because of things that had nothing to do with school, it was him. I mean, Dick? Yes, the circus boy was adopted by Gotham's most outrageous playboy but raised among the rich since the age of nine. Just another snob, whether he wanted to be or not. Plus, he was charismatic and stole hearts wherever he went. Jason, however? He was the Crime Alley brat Bruce had picked up as a charity, according to the media. Who had become part of a world where he didn't belong. He may have been one of the most diligent in class, but in the school hallways, he was nothing more than a kid that no one wanted to get close to as if he was going to infect the rest of the lice. And those who did want to approach him, it was because they thought it was fun to harass the brat who was taking advantage of the kindness of oh good Brucie Wayne.

If Jason was a freeloader back then for being swept off the streets by Bruce, what was Tim, Jason didn't need to be specified. How could they not make fun of the kid who seemed to have the world a year ago, internationally recognized as a superboy , and kicked by his foster father back to the biggest youth hell? One moment on top and the next demoted again with the others of his kind. Like getting a supposedly gifted baby up to high school and then shamefully returning to kindergarten.

But something still didn't fit.

"I get it, kid. Being the adopted orphan of a celebrity is never easy, and school sucks..."

"Alfred says you loved school," Tim interrupted eyes back on his shoes. Jason gave him a sulky look.

"I liked to learn... " he corrected. Tim muttered a retort, but Jason ignored him and continued, "My point is that bullies always find something to get on your nerves, believe me, I was very good at provoking them, but at the end of the day you know that nothing they say is true. I understand you don't want to draw attention to yourself, but hell, kid, if you don't plan on hitting back don't bother responding to them. Just don't-"

Jason decided to keep quiet. Tim was still crestfallen so he had tried to meet his gaze to make his words clear, however, the resigned reaction he was expecting was not what he was encountering.

Tim's lips were quivering as much as his clenched fists and from the twitching of his nostrils, Jason could decipher that his opponent was beginning to get exasperated.

Apparently, he had given the wrong answer. Hell , that won for worrying about his little brother.

"Why," gasped Tim, "why... I don't... Jason, I don't...".

There was a long pause. Tim huffed in annoyance and rubbed his palms roughly against his eyes. He left his hands pressed against his face before resuming his monologue.

Jason didn't dare interrupt him for fear of upsetting him again.

"I didn't tell them anything. I know that nothing they say when they pick on me is true. No one knows absolutely nothing about how I felt when I was orphaned, that Bruce was like my father before he adopted me, or why the hell I ended up as CEO of W.E. in the first place. I told you, I just want to go, pass the classes and never have to set foot in a school again," if his voice shook, Tim ignored it and kept going, his tone of voice louder than he would have liked and his hands still covering his eyes. God, he was so exhausted. Not long ago he was going through the worst year of his life and now he had to go through stupid teenage shit and bullying problems again. What he was missing. "I didn't provoke them, Jay. They went straight out to hit me . I swear. "

Jason had to admit that that last murmur tore him apart. If his anger wasn't already under much more control since he first emerged from the pit, he surely would have seen green. He wanted to thoroughly interrogate his brother to coax out those responsible for beating his face into a pulp so he could smash their heads in, but he didn't want to overreact and push Tim away.

But he still didn't understand.

"Why?"

The question was only a whisper, only audible over the stillness of the night from the top of the rooftop Jason had approached when in the distance he spotted someone he thought might be about to pounce.

Tim hesitated. He dropped his hands to his thighs and looked at Jason with glazed eyes and a broken gaze. He felt it was idiotic to be so overwhelmed. He had been beaten, kidnapped, and tortured in the past, but for some reason, that stupid school beating was getting to him more than all the previous suffering. Probably because the first time he gave himself a minute to himself and did some introspection, daring little by little to let himself be seen for who he really was, he got spit on and scorned right away. He had been caught vulnerable and let himself be knocked down.

He analyzed Jason. His eyes reflected concern, his posture was relaxed and he deliberately showed his palms upward to keep Tim from tensing further. Of all people, after everything he'd done to him, why would Jason judge him? And if he did, could that be any worse than when he, his Robin , tried to murder him?

He inhaled deeply. He wished he had that cigarette between his fingers again so he'd have something to vent the anxiety on. He fumbled at his side and picked up the lighter that had at some point slipped from his grip, he scraped it away to distract himself so he wouldn't have to look Jason in the eye when he spoke to him. Anyway, it no longer looked like his brother had any intention of leaving him for a good while.

"I don't have any friends, I haven't really tried to make friends at school. I don't need them," he could hear Jason tapping against the floor beneath them as he listened to him, "So I just get lost around and talk to Kon and Bart during breaks, sometimes the rest of the old crew too. But there's the stupid policy that everyone has to go to the cafeteria during lunch, and it's not narrow enough to just get lost in the crowd. And I was..."

He stopped fiddling with the lighter, his hands fell against his lap and his eyes unfocused as he stared at the buildings in the distance, his pupils reflecting the distant lights of the city. If he let himself disconnect slightly from reality, as if his brother wasn't beside him listening to him, perhaps it would be easier to let it all out. He didn't want advice, understanding, or a pity pat on the back; he wanted to throw up what was making him sad and maybe help with a cover-up.

"I was texting with Kon," he laughed dryly. "I guess I must have looked like an idiot smiling at the screen for a moment because the idiots who like to mess with me took my phone away and started reading aloud some messages..." Tim bit his lip hard and blood began to form a ball in his open wound.

When his little brother trembled a little in frustration, Jason's gaze darkened. Possibly he wasn't inferring everything correctly, but if this went the way he thought it would, he'd have to pay some people a few visits.

And make them disappear.

Continuing seemed to make it difficult for Tim for a while, and while Jason would like to give him his time, he knew the boy could burn his head thinking of hundreds of different reactions he might receive before planning every word out of his mouth, and he didn't want to stress him out any further, so he took the initiative.

He cleared his throat with a rumble. Tim looked at him again and left his poor injured lip alone. Jason grimaced a smile-like grimace and wiped away the small drop of blood that threatened to trickle down onto his brother's chin.

"Do you have any more?" he asked, gesturing toward the cigarette he had put out a while back.

Tim looked confused for a moment, but soon patted his wide denim jacket and pulled a box out of his pocket.

Jason couldn't hold back the smirk when he saw that the pack was missing only one cylinder. He had truly caught the younger man red-handed in his first attempt at common rebellion. He snatched the lighter from his fingers and lit a cigarette resting between his lips. He stowed both items in his own pockets and took a long puff.

"Is Kon your best friend?", Jason asked as he let the smoke out of his mouth.

Tim took a moment just to stop and think that he really didn't like the way the cigarette smoke that was coming through his nose felt. He was more connected than before, but he still wasn't looking at Jason, luckily, he was looking at the sky as he smoked. He was a detective, a really good one, he didn't need to overthink so much what Jay was implying. He didn't seem worried about the answer Tim might give him, as if he actually already knew the truth and was just making a preamble.

"He's my boyfriend," he clarified.

Jason nodded and smoked some more before blowing the smoke in his brother's face. Tim coughed and looked at him in annoyance as he tried to push it away with one hand.

"Great. Roy is mine. We both had “best friends to lovers”, goals ."

Tim's breathing hitched for a second. Suddenly he felt that when Jason said he understood, now it was true. He was able to calm down a little, but at the same time, he felt panic. He was so closed off to the heteronormativity around him that he failed as a detective and didn't consider everything in front of him. All the clues. Everything could have been so obvious . He allowed himself to laugh a little, though it came out somewhat hysterical.

"For crying out loud, can you unlearn that? Where did you get that jargon, bestie ." Jason raised an eyebrow.

"I use Twitter too, baby bird. What, you think because I died I stayed on FotoLog or something?"

"Well, Dick uses MySpace..."

This time, Jason went blank for a millisecond before resuming smoking.

"God, I don't know how he gets the girls. He's a dinosaur." Tim allowed himself to laugh. Jason smiled too with his cigar between his teeth. "Hey, Timmy, you know... You know they're the ones in the wrong, right?"

Tim fiddled with his hands again. Uh, so the conversation wasn't over yet.

"He did me...," Tim watched his brother for a second, reassuring himself that he could trust him to talk about his feelings so directly. He was afraid, no longer of rejection, but teasing. He knew that from Jason they wouldn't come malicious, not the way those from the boys at school did, but still, he wasn't in a good place yet to hear them. "I really like him, Jason," he said slowly. His brother nodded. "And I wouldn't be ashamed of him, ever. But I wasn't ready for people I didn't care about to know, for there to be even more rumors about me floating around... No one knew yet."

His hands shook. Jason moved closer to him and nudged his shoulder with his elbow. He flicked the butt of his cigarette but didn't smoke. He stood thinking for a moment until he decided to let it go. Jason stubbed out the cigarette with a slight sigh and took his younger brother's jelly hands between his own, heading straight for him, even though Tim didn't return his gaze.

"Listen, Timmers. If you were to go now and tell anyone at home about Roy and me, even if it was our family -Alfred's own- and I gave you a fucking beating, would it be my fault?"

Tim scrunched up his face and finally looked at him. "What?"

"No. It would be your fault for being an idiot bastard and taking away my chance to share my shit on my time. No one has the right to force you out of your comfort zone, to go around handing out your secrets like they're business cards. Get it?"

Tim bit his lip. He remembered, then, that time when Bruce had revealed his civilian identity to Stephanie without his permission. His stomach churned the same way now. He felt bad and angry, so upset that he felt sick and depressed. So he nodded.

"Yeah. I guess."

Jason nodded in agreement and released his brother's hands, which had finally regained stability. Instead, he brought his right hand to the other's shoulder. Now, however, pausing to stare at Tim's bruised face for a while longer, his heart couldn't help but squeeze painfully. Without realizing it, his free hand found itself outlining the contour of the larger bruise on the pale face. His voice became soft as he spoke again:

"So, little brother , if someone you didn't even want to know something finds out the hard way and forces you to tell everyone else, the ones who deserve the beating are them. So, can you explain to me why they left you like this ?"

"I told you I'm not ashamed of..." he grimaced. "What I'm like, and I understand that they're wrong, but I still feel... bad. I feel horrible, Jay. If you like guys... If liking guys isn't wrong, why do they have to get so upset? I was just standing there. I barely... I barely clicked my tongue when they came up to me after class and suddenly I had them all over me justifying kicks and punches. As if I deserved it. I don't deserve it, do I, Jay? I deserve a lot of punches, but not for being in love with my best friend, or do I? Is there any fucking reason that justifies getting my face smashed in just because I can't defend myself in public?"

No. Jason wanted to say. Not just for the beating that day, but for any he had received in the past. But how did he make him understand that with a simple denial. He knew Tim wasn't going to believe he didn't deserve to be beaten, not when he had willingly taken so many beatings, convinced there was good reason to accept them. Surely Tim was sure he deserved the beatings he took from Bruce while they were training because he wasn't good enough, or the ones Damian once tried to give him for not being worthy of the last name he took; especially the ones Jason himself once gave him, repeating to him that yes , indeed, he did deserve them. So how could one of his victimizers now convince him that he didn't deserve to be beaten just for being himself when all his life he had been proven otherwise. For being Tim, for being Robin, now for being gay .

A tear tripped over Jay's thumb on Tim's cheek. Jason didn't know how to respond.

"I don't think I deserve Roy, Timmy. And I know you. Always so forgiving, except to yourself," he paused and pinched his brother's nose before releasing his face. He just sniffed. "You think you deserve the clone boy?"

Tim curved his lips and shook his head as he wiped away the tear that had escaped.

"Then why would you deserve to take hits for him?"

"That doesn't make any sense, Jason."

Jason wrinkled his nose and settled back on his elbows, kicking his boots against the edge of the roof.

"I know, but you were being a jerk and I didn't know what else to say." Tim snorted. His laugh was watery but less depressed than before.

"I really hate myself, Jay." His brother nodded. Self-deprecation was not something he was a stranger to. "And I hate being made to think I have more reason to."

"Lucky you're known to Red Hood, don't you think?"

Tim pressed his palms against his eyes and allowed himself to laugh even as tears were welling up. God, he wanted to see Kon .

"Bullies are kids too, Jay. Red Hood doesn't attack children." Jason grimaced.

"You know firsthand that there are exceptions."

Tim laughed again but the smile slowly morphed into a quivering-lipped grimace and his shoulders began to shake. Jason couldn't bear to feign disinterest any longer and this time he pulled Tim into a hug, allowing him to hide his teary face in his chest.

"It really hurts, Jay… I always get beat up on patrol, but it hurts . "

Jason wanted to point out that it would hurt more if he squeezed his bruises like he was doing and kept biting and going on to wear his wounds at every turn, he thought that even the hug might be contributing to the pain, but he just kept quiet and stroked the boy's hair.

"Shh, it's okay. You can cry, I won't tell your boss ." Against all odds, Tim listened . The sobs started.

" I hate school ," he mumbled. So many teenagers said the same thing daily, Tim himself repeated it every chance he got, yet it felt so real this time. Not hate having to go and take classes, but everything else that came with that heavy social interaction. The boy was constantly under a lot of stress and was generally a good extrovert, but selective . If in just two weeks, he was already giving up on nine more months of school, he was seriously burned out. "Red Robin can take rejection and beatings, and Tim Drake could take them without complaint. But I'm tired, " Tim sobbed.

Jason just held him tighter and continued to cuddle him, humming at times so Tim wouldn't have to concentrate on his sobbing and snot slurping through the excessive calm of the night. He waited for him to calm down for several minutes, maybe even an hour. He didn't care, he couldn't help his little brother rest, but he could give him a moment for the lump in his throat to loosen. God knows the only way Tim Drake-Wayne allowed himself to get the water out was by sweating and in the bathroom, never through his eyes. He needed to cry.

Finally, Tim forced him away and wiped his face with the sleeves of his jacket. His eyes again focused on the darkness between the buildings in front of him instead of on his brother sitting next to him. Jason wanted to laugh, but he held it in. Namely, he had found nineteen-year-old Tim decapitating gummy bears to swap the colors of the heads and bodies once, but he was more embarrassed as if it was childish to cry in front of someone else.

"You know...," Jason began in an effort to break the forced awkwardness. "If you want to piss Dick off for accusing you of being a rebel for saving his dad's ass, smoking miles away from him and choking on the first puff won't work."

"It's not what-!", Tim growled as he turned quickly and saw that Jason was smirking mockingly. He pouted and lowered his voice. God, he looked like a baby , how could he believe it wasn't okay for him to cry like one. "That's not what I was trying to do, I just wanted to drown out the stress. It was the first thing I thought of."

Jason hummed in response. Well, at least he had opted for long-term self-destructive tendencies instead of going straight to cutting off his arms or going into an alcoholic coma.

"Actually, smoking won't help. Trust me. Next time try marijuana."

Tim nudged him in an instant. Jason hissed but laughed.

"Hey! I'm trying to help," he guffawed.

"I'm not going to get high," he muttered. He sounded embarrassed.

"Okay, but if you wanted to try it sometime and Dick found out, no matter how much he wants to lie to you, I swear he tried it," Jason accused, squinting at the clear sky in front of him as if he could see Dick. "Or just get a piercing, whatever. Knowing him, anything will piss him off coming from the well-behaved little brother."

Tim clicked his tongue but had to wipe his runny nose almost at the same time so he couldn't look angry enough.

"I'm not like that," he mumbled.

Jason smiled. Good, his brother was feeling better.

Jason's phone vibrated in one of the inside pockets of his leather jacket so he took advantage of the fact that Tim was fighting his watery snot to take a look at it.

Speedy "I'm already in town babe" "meet me in thirty minutes?"

Jaybird "Make it an hour."

Jason allowed himself to smile at the screen. He wondered if the sense of reassurance that seeing a message from his boyfriend after a tiring day brought him was the same feeling that helped Tim get over the discomfort he was getting from school while texting with Conner. The same feeling he would now feel compelled to contain and be careful not to externalize because of some jerks.

Hmm , maybe his little brother deserved to be a little rebellious these days. "Hey, Timbo."

"What do you want?"

Great, it still looked pitiful, but it had regained its usual acidity. It was progress. "How about I teach you how to smoke?"

Because yes, Jason could play the good big brother, but it was also his duty to keep up the bad influence style.

And he did deserve to have some fun. They did. 

♡

#ao3 #fanfic #fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #batman #red robin #red hood #tim drake #jason todd #batfam #batfamily #timkon #jayroy #royjay #jason tood and tim drake #dc robin #siblings #brotherly love #brotherly feels #hurt/comfort #coming out #pride #one shot #dick grayson #kontim #robin

[paladin-of-nerd-fandom65]

Got some more! :D probably be it until a few days

1: as seen in Nightwing: a new order, Jake had a voltron robot in his room, most likely Dick introduced him to it, do you think dick showed him more of his childhood like how some parents do?

2: since Jake is a fan of basketball both fanon & canon, does he look up basketball stuff? I bet he likes the first space jam movie ;)

3: does the starburst duo like horror movies? If not, what’s their favorite costume to wear on Halloween?

4: if they can dye their hair what colors would they be?

5: when they are older, what would their favorite nostalgic moment between the two of them?

6: what’s their favorite superheroes? both in universe and maybe some heroes from different superhero comics.

7: does Chris have a crush on mar’i when they are older? I can totally see Jake and Chris becoming brother in laws

1. Oh very much he would. It’ll be all the works of what Dick grew up with as a kid. It further contributes to all those times of people, both Titans and Batfam, can look at those just once and make a remark about the Family Resemblance. All that’s missing is that Jake having blue eyes like Dick’s and as Dinah Lance once put it “It’s like Dick somehow became younger while we all got older”

2. Yes he would. Whether it be entire history articles about how the major league teams came to be, the records being held up, etc, It fills up his search engines on all of his devices like there’s no tomorrow. He would also like that movie, whether basketball related or not, at least for the sheer novelty of it, having a good laugh at its plot and select moments of it alongside his friends and loved ones on some movie nights.

3. They want to like them and they’re fascinated by them….the issue lies in the factor that no matter how much they’ve trained and seen all sort of actual in universe terrors throughout basically all their lives, one too many splattering moments and jump scares are enough to send them scurrying straight to their respective parents’ rooms.

As for their preferred costumes on All Hallow’s Eve; Chris designed a custom built rubber monster suit akin to all those Japanese monster movies Conner showed him once. His in particular is very influenced by Godzilla, only instead of dorsal plates and iguanodon arms, his monster design has a frill, velociraptor arms along with toe claws and Carnotaurus horns. Then there’s Jake who basically design a Pokémon trainer outfit with his superhero colors (Basically a Discowing colored version of say Red or even Satoshi/Ash)

4. As once suggested not too long ago by a friend of mine, @spider-jaysart , Chris would have a black streak in otherwise brown hair whilst Jake’s streak in turn would have a red one.

5. Maybe one of the favorite moments they look back in the most would be the time they performed as part of the band (Chris on Bass and Jake on Drums) for Bludhaven Academy’s Last Day of School Dance along with Thara and Meredith (who which they played Rhythm and Leas Guitar respectively) in front of all of those classmates, their parents, staff members, all the while not cracking under the pressure. They still keep photos of that performance and their band group shots in their albums to the very day

6. For the both of them in universe, they both agree on Superman being a strong favorite for many obvious reasons. As for other heroes besides the Big Blue Boyscout, Jake more or less bases his entire hero work on Robins from the past, primarily his Father and (the still current one in my personal preference though I digress) Uncle Tim. For Chris, he also looks up very greatly to Tim Drake as Robin and the only other hero that can come close to that appeal for him would be either Shazam (Billy) or Cyborg.

As for other heroes which aren’t native to the DCU, there’s principally two mains for the both of them: Invincible aka Mark Grayson and Peter Parker, The Amazing Spider-Man

7. Actually (and apologies if I end up disappointing you my friend, sincerely) but Chris Kent and Mar’i Grayson are an example of two friends, boy and girl, that don’t end up in a romance between them. For one thing, Chris is already crushing the aforementioned Thara Ak-Var (Long story Incredibly short, she’s much younger here as Chris’ contemporary, New Krypton coexists and she’s an exchange student at Chris and Jon’s school) while Mar’I, if she lands at date at all, would be with someone outside of the Graysons’ social circle, as in not within any one of the superhero community whatsoever, much to Dick’s overprotective nature of course. In fact, Mar’i actually helps Chris with his strategies for getting closer to Thara.

I how these answers are to your liking @gothicghost2000 . They’re really fun to do. If you have any questions, suggestions or otherwise, reblogging and/or replying would be greatly appreciated.

#chris kent #jake grayson #dick grayson #mari grayson #tim drake #clark kent #halloween #thara ak var #billy batson #victor stone #mark grayson #invincible #peter parker #starburst duo #meredith robinson

[veryace-ficrecs]

Social Media Fic Recs

One of my guiltiest and pickiest pleasures in fic are twitter fics! This list is made up of some of my favorite in the category, including socials other then twitter.

This list will include all ratings and tags, so read at your own discretion! :)

The Martian:

The Mark Watney Report by AsperJasper - Rated G

Space Pirate-Ninja @MarkWatney nasa must agree with me if they only censored my f*uck a little bit last time i tried to swear at martinez they replaced it with an emoji

Space Pirate-Ninja @MarkWatney this is what power feels like: making some poor person at nasa decide which curse words are appropriate to be tweeted out over work wifi

You Know You Have a Permanent Piece of My Medium-Sized American Heart      by tricatular - Rated T

“Hey Hermes!” The ambient suspicion level in the Rec ratcheted up significantly. Kapoor was disturbingly cheerful. “We’ve sent you some mission updates in the data dump, but Mitch and I wanted to personally let you know—” Mitch visibly rolled his eyes in the background. “—That thanks to some…strong suggestions from the White House, and on Annie and Director Sanders’ recommendation, we’ve started releasing Watney’s Mars logs to the public.”

Marvel:

Caption That by maddo - Rated T

Peter’s Instagram had been pretty popular since Instagram’s account noticed and reposted one of his photos, an impossible angle of the New York skyline (thank you Spider-Man) and was floating at around twenty thousand followers.

Then suddenly, @pparker was in the top 100 most followed Instagram accounts.

Just a bunch of little anecdotes regarding our favourite spider and his Instagram account, feat. a meme-tastic Tony Stark.

The Life of Spidey (As Seen Through A Spider-Man Fan Account) by hi_im_jared_19 - Rated T

Spidey-is-a-disaster @chaoticgoodboy

Disclaimer: I appreciate Spidey stepping up to help others. If more people acted like him, the world would be a better place. He is undeniably a good person. That being said, he is an entire human disaster, and I’m here to prove it.

OR

Spider-Man's rise to popularity through the lens of a random twitter account dedicated to his dumbassery.

the conspiracy kids by tempestaurora - Rated T

Series: 3 Works

in which peter, harley and ned ask the all-important question: WHO IS SPIDER-MAN? 

one mask at a time by natelette - Rated T

Spider-Man is unmasked, and the world reacts.

Or how Peter, the internet, and the entire world deal in the wake of Mysterio’s video. Spoilers for Far From Home.

DC:

The True Identity: Bruce Wayne by November_Clouds - Rated G

makayla | sc mkyla457 @mkyla456        lmao watch him go off        [attached: Video of Bruce Wayne in business casual clothes screaming as he charges towards The Penguin brandishing a long black pipe. Behind him is the main center for the Martha Wayne Foundation, front windows shattered and reception desk on fire. The Penguin looks Scared.]      

After a tweet goes viral, people think they've finally figured it out. The real identity of Bruce Wayne.

Red Hood.

(social media fic, based off that tumblr post)

Gotham Online by julidoesnotwrite (notjuli) - Rated  T

The Waynes and the Bats as seen through social media.

gotham : a conspiracy thread by noahfense (orphan_account) - Rated T

ti(i wanna die)m @nightwingsass

the real reason Batman hasn’t responded to my conspiracy thread is because he’s jared,19,

-

in a world where Jason Todd didn't die and Tim Drake has parents that actually care about his wellbeing, Tim runs a popular batfam stan account and his followers convince him to start a YouTube channel.

Yuri on Ice:

Night is Young and the Music's High by opalish - Rated T

"Best press conference ever," the Japanese Nationals silver medalist says when asked.  “Ten out of ten, would medal again.”

"I would die for Katsuki-kun," Minami declares, with terrifying sincerity.

  On ICE!!! by Watermelonsmellinfellon - Rated M

The first time Katsuki Yuuri saw Victor Nikiforov perform, he realized he had a great desire to see figure skating in a video game. In fifteen years, his dream is realized. Little does he know that Victor's attention has been caught by the very game he unknowingly inspired. So ensues the cutest meeting ever and the relationship that follows.

Love Born in the Eye of the Storm by ScribblerQueen1 - Rated T

After a snowstorm cancels their return flight and all the hotels are overbooked, Yuuri decides to detour home to wait it out. He offers to let other stranded skaters stay at Yuu-topia, he just didn't know one of them was Victor Nikiforov. 

(i'm) the boy you'd die for by jenmishe - Rated T

v-nikiforov ✓

[Video: A short clip where Victor is laying dramatically on the couch with miserable expression. “Heartbreaker” by Marina and the Diamonds is playing.]

13,481 likes

v-nikiforov✓ Am I the another one? (((

vitYASS victor,,,, honey,,,, i lvoe you so much,,,, but WHY are you like this.

red-blue-gay but??? does that mean that somebody has broken victor’s heart???? I DON'T UNDERSTAND

christophe-gc ✓ You’re ridiculous.

starsaregay But who recorded it?? Makkachin???

vityathebabe user @starsaregay asking the real question.

--- The adventures of Yuuri "Heartbreaker" Katsuki, or: how Yuuri became known as a cold player full of himself who doesn't care about anyone. (Hint: it's an anxiety and obliviousness.)

Haikyuu:

Framing by Fayah - Rated M

At age 22, Kozume Kenma had millions of subscribers on youtube, one blissfully fucked out Hinata Shouyou on his bed, and a plan. 

conflict of interest by zukushou -Rated T

“If you are familiar with the world of D-1 volleyball, chances are you’ve heard the names Hinata Shouyou and Kageyama Tobio. Both twenty-four-year-old athletes are famous for their skill and athletic prowess, but they’ve recently become household names for their intense rivalry.

Early this year, Hinata Shouyou signed onto the MSBY Black Jackals as a wing spiker after a two-year stint in Brazil, playing beach volleyball. He was an unknown in the V-League, but he quickly proved himself with his defensive skill and incredible jumping height and speed.

It wasn’t until the fateful Schweiden Adlers vs. MSBY Black Jackals match just yesterday that viewers came to the realization that Hinata Shouyou was the long-awaited rival of Kageyama Tobio.”

OR

Kageyama and Hinata are married. The press seem to think that they’re hostile rivals who despise each other.

On Great Rivalries and General Dumbassery by NocturnalNights - Rated G

It's not exactly that they were hiding the fact that they had been married for about 7 years now. It's that no one seemed to have caught on yet.

Or: Kageyama and Hinata may have forgotten to mention one very important part of their rivalry.

Good Omens:

 it's a new craze by attheborder - Rated T

CROWLEY: I try not to make a habit of gratitude, but I must give our appreciation to everyone out there who’s been listening and subscribing to The Ineffable Plan. AZIRAPHALE: Ooh, yes, we’ve become quite popular, haven’t we? CROWLEY: Yeah, just hit number eight on the advice charts … No advertising at all. AZIRAPHALE: Mm. How … miraculous. CROWLEY: … Aziraphale. You did not.

***

Crowley and Aziraphale are very possibly the people least qualified, on the entire planet, to start up an advice podcast.

But what else is there to do when the world isn’t ending anytime soon, you’re technically on indefinite sabbatical from your lifelong careers, and you need a plausible excuse to spend more time with your best friend who you’re definitely not, absolutely not, maybe just a little, actually maybe overwhelmingly in love with?

hear that bell ringing (but won't get the door) by Rivran - Rated T

Social media: 1 Aziraphale and Crowley: 0.

These could all be read standalone, but it’s better if you read them in order. No, yeah, you should definitely read these in order. Each story features Aziraphale and Crowley, with a supporting cast of human characters for that sweet sweet outsider POV.

It (movies):

Retweet Verse by plinys - Rated T

Series: 12 works

A collection of post-It Ch2 fics that are a mix of domestic Richie/Eddie and social media interactions from all the Losers.

Buzzfeed Presents: 10 Times Richie and Eddie Tozier were Very, Very Married by kyaticlikestea - Rated T

Stanley Uris @surisaccounting I was going through my most recent photos and came across this nice one of @richietozier and @etozier at their wedding last week. Congratulations to the happy couple. They’ve never looked better. [attached image is a photo of two penguins arguing]

Richie ‘My Husband is Also A’ Tozier ✔ @richietozier replying to @surisaccounting Hey @surisaccounting take down that tweet or I’ll keep doing this [attached image is a photo of a Common Potoo, which has been incorrectly labelled ‘Crow’ in Comic Sans font]

Buzzfeed makes a list of all the times Richie and Eddie Tozier, beloved husbands of the Internet, were incredibly married. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it isn't a short list.

Nicest Celebrity You've Ever Met? by atomicteaparty - Rated G

Richie Tozier is a loudmouth guy who can’t be kept down by any woman at all! He’s a party animal who’s constantly meeting new people and living up the party lifestyle… or at least, that’s what his onstage persona is.

What if people who’ve met him realize he isn’t the same guy in real life?

Or: Some people talk about how Richie Tozier surprised them on reddit

14 Reasons Why Richie Tozier and His Husband Are #relationshipgoals by robin_hoods - Rated M

Get yourself a man who looks at you like Richie Tozier looks at Eddie. 

areas of expertise by dudski - Rated T

The Exoneration of Richie Tozier by Blissymbolics - Rated T

COMEDIAN RICHIE TOZIER VOLUNTARILY CONFESSES TO STRIKING AND KILLING AN ESCAPED CONVICT IN WHAT MAINE AUTHORITIES ARE CALLING A JUSTIFIED HOMICIDE IN DEFENSE OF ANOTHER

Tozier reportedly struck the assailant on the back of the head with a blunt object in defense of his childhood friend, Michael Hanlon, a librarian who lives in Tozier's hometown of Derry, Maine.

I killed a clown. AMA! by liesmyth - Rated T

I (39M) got stabbed twice today and now I want a divorce. Help?

Or: the one where Eddie is on Reddit.

October 14, 2016.

@PuzzleStan is:

-A puzzle enthusiast named Stan (44%, 3553 votes) -An anonymous stan of puzzles (44%, 3602 votes) -A puzzle enthusiast named Stan who is leaning into the wordplay (12%, 969 votes)

Misc - For Fandoms with only one fic:

#thatjacksonkid by The_German_Grim_Reaper - Rated G

Fandom: Percy Jackson

Following an episode of Buzzfeed Unsolved, several twitter users do their best to uncover the truth about Percy Jackson.  They get surprisingly far.

 Mr LAFD Updates Man by hammersmiths - Rated T

Fandom: 9-1-1

Series: 2 works

Eddie mans the LAFD Twitter account. Buck tries to be supportive.

Audience: 822,000 and Homeland Security by WerewolvesAreReal - Rated G

Fandom: Leverage

Hardison starts a live-stream for Dragon Age to show off his new mods. And he kicks ass. But his viewers are actually a bit more concerned about the angry guy in the background of his videos, and the blond chick who keeps peering through his windows.

"Is this some kind of performance art," asks peskytroll341.

Actually Me - Eddie Munson by Savi_Yoi - Rated G

Fandom: Stranger Things

This idea was bouncing around my brain at 3am so I just had to write it down.

Eddie is a famous musician. Gaining fame through the 90s with Corroded Coffin. Him and Steve have been together since 1987, but they were always very private about their relationship. Steve is like a cryptid in the Corroded Coffin fandom, with very little information about him, and very few pictures. Eddie is promoting a solo album in 2021, and Steve is pulled on camera to do a silly interview with him. They're about 54/55 in this fic.

This is the transcript of that interview.

#veryace recs #fanfic recs #the martian #yuri!!! on ice #it 2017 #haikyuu!! #dc #batman #good omens #9-1-1 #leverage #stranger things #percy jackson

[gayfrogs03]

There are two characters that I love in two different fandoms that the fandoms have labeled them as introverts when they are actually extroverts

Those characters are Nico di Angelo and Tim Drake-Wayne

Nico is an extrovert that loves being with people and talking, and hanging out but people have shown him time and time again that they don't want him around and him being around makes them uncomfortable. Because he doesn't want to make people uncomfortable and sees he not welcome he distances himself from them. So because of this the fandom has labeled him an introvert, when in reality he wants to be with people but knows people don't want to be with him

Not to mention Nico is shown over and over again to get himself and others really good allies by simply being nice and talking to people that others have outcasted or helping those who were wronged, Percy and Annabeth wouldn't have made it out of actual hell (can't spell, to lazy to figure it out) if Nico hadn't taken the time to talk to Bob, hang out with him and just generally be nice to him, Hestia says that Nico was the first one to notice her and talk to her in hundreds of years, we wouldn't have Hazel if it weren't for Nico (people say he was just trying to replace Bianca, but with how much he loved and respected both Bianca and Hazel I don't think that's true, I think he said what he meant, he thought she didn't deserve to be there and should have a second chance. I think think he loves and respects Hazel, but not as Bianca's replacement, but as Hazel herself.), the way he and Reyna grew so close while both of them are actively trying not to, he had the respect of basically all of Camp Jupiter even was allowed in the meetings

He himself was an ally the whole time, never stopped being one despite what people think. Everyone thinks he's just this mean emo introvert that hates everyone, when in reality he's a scared child who kept getting shoved to the side, but despite this he continues to give and give to help the same people who keep hurting him. He helps them in the Labyrinth (yes, he "betrayed" them first but he was 10 or 11 years old being used and manipulated by King Minos), he finds a way for Percy to stay alive (again betrayal, but again was lied to, used, and manipulated, it was very easy to do this to him because he was a scared, lost, child with no one to turn to and experiencing so many new, terrifying, things and feelings, and he still held his part of the deal, even after Percy choked him and admitted the only reason he isn't killing him is because Nico was his only way out), convinced Hades, Persephone, and Demeter to join them in the war despite his own life being on the line while doing so -Hades literally threatened to kill him-, he willingly went into actual hell to get information for them, tried to save Percy and Annabeth from falling in, lead the rest of the seven to the other side of the gates despite them treating him like trash the whole time, gets violently outed by a God getting what they needed, goes on a suicide mission for them traveling across the world with the stupid statue, then right after, still dying, joins them in the war.

I'm sure there is something I missed, you can't tell me he's an introvert that hates people when he's willing to do all of this and more for them and other strangers, Nico is an extrovert that loves people, people have just shown to hate him :(

Tim Drake is an extrovert through and through, he loves being with, talking to, and helping people, and is well liked to. It's shown time and time again throughout the comics that people are drawn to him, all the time, a big example of this is his now boyfriend Bernard who saw him walking by and immediately got him and went right to him curious and wanting to befriend him. Tim was that one super nice kid that was in EVERY friend group, even friends with bullies (though he wouldn't let them bully anyone, like that one scene where this big kid is bullying this little nerd and Tim, without using insults or hurting everyone, convinced him to stop by actually putting the victims in a better light (told the bully that the victim was more capable than be thought using his big brain to his advantage) and the bully was like, "Yeah, you right. Thanks Tim!" Obviously not a direct quote). Part of the reason why Tim was such a good Robin was because he was great with people and saw what they needed/wanted when saving that (that last part is more of my opinion than fact, if you disagree that's fine)

But the fandom seems to have labeled Tim as this loner who has no friends, is terrible at talking to people, and only wants to work. I can think of two reasons why that MIGHT be. One, because of how he was in Red Robin, pushing people away and such, but during that time he was going through A LOT, but if you notice, during that time he managed to befriend three assassins that at first were there to kill him (I know it wasn't the power of friendship that stopped them from trying, Ra's told them to help him instead, but while helping him they didn't have to become friends, that was all Tim). And number two, his struggle to befriend the other capes (like the core four), but this could be because of a number of things not him being an introvert. Like him not being allowed to reveal his identity, even tho he wanted too, making it harder to trust him. He also seemed to think their relationship is only supposed to be professional, like coworkers, and he wasn't supposed to befriend them. Or he's used to things being in a controlled strict way while he's Robin, and the core four and others being so chaotic and impulsive (hehe, Impulse) overwhelmed and confused him. People also seem to think that because of his parents abuse by neglecting him (they did, it's canon, just because they loved him it doesn't stop the neglect and the fact that neglect is abuse, won't take any arguments on that) he should be more withdrawn or something when that, one just isn't correct people react a lot of different ways to abuse, and two just not Tim, not how he reacted to him, if anything their neglect made him want to be around people more.

Anyway, I got off topic AGAIN, the fandoms made these two characters into loner introverts when that is not true to their characters at all, and this really bugs me a lot because being extroverts and loving people is a big part of who they are, and a lot of times the fandom does it to be like, "Oh look at my poor baby boy!" which is weird

#tim drake #nico di angelo #batman #percy jackson #introvert #extrovert #red robin #the ghost king

[dairy-farmer]

jaytim angst fic recs? 🥹🫧

!!!! yess!!! i have a few, a lot are one shots/short since i have horrendous attention span and it takes me days if not weeks to be able to get through long fics- once again: blanket warning for dark or angsty tags, noncon, unhappy endings, one-sidedness etc

one-sided by cicigreen03

jason developed feelings for tim and came to his birthday party only to find out tim was already taken and dating bernard

found each other on the wayside by yasmindifference

jason and tim have been sleeping together and maybe developing into something more for months. then tim is caught in an explosion and presumed dead and jason sees no reason to keep his hands clean anymore

Keep Moving Forward by pemfrost

jason and tim have broken up and have their first real conversation following the end of their relationship. dick is stuck as a witness

Two hearts, one bet by lovetimdrake

rom com angst plot where jason bets that, for 200 bucks, he can successfully bed sweet little time drake. jason is somehow unware how he might be an asshole for doing it until he actually gets to know sweet tim drake.

Ya'aburnee by RivetingFabrications

earth and many of its heroes were destroyed in an invasion, against his will, jason is forced to leave tim behind on earth along with other refugees being evacuated. a decade later sensors pick up activity from earth. people have survived. jason finds tim but...not the same.

All Tied Up And No Place to Go by WeirdAlterEgo

tim is trapped into a relationship he doesn't want and is terrified of jason. only...that's not what jason thinks is happening.

Force-Fed by meaninglessblah

tim has survived the game show that is the hunger games by pretending to be a star-crossed lover with another competitor in the games that came close to killing him. tim doesn't like him, is scared of him. but to keep his life he must keep up the act. turns out the show never ended because wealthy sponsors are now talking about how excited they are to see his and jason's 'first time' together. jason and him are in this miserable existence together now.

Time to Save You by darkdream253

jason and tim meet in a time slip 3 years apart. only that jason is dead in tim's time.

To love and to honour by elareine

jason and tim and the ups and downs of their marriage

also an additional platonic angsty jason and tim centric fic!!

The Long Way Home by itsnatalie

jason and tim don't get along but when they're tugged into a labyrinth and forced to compete for their lives they'll have no choice but to work together and trust the other will have their back.

***this one is more gen/platonic but their dynamic in this one is so good!!!!!

#anonymous #asks #answered asks #jaytim #jaytim fic recs #fic rec list

[sunnymusingsao3]

won't you open the door, and try me once more?

Words: 3657 Rating: Teen and Up Warnings: Internalized Homophobia, Religious Trauma/Imagery Relationships: Bernard Dowd/Tim Drake, a smattering of Darla Aquista & Bernard Dowd Summary: A Bernard Dowd character study, which focuses primarily on the religious imagery angle, and a possible upbringing for Bernard wherein he struggled with internalized homophobia. Inspired by the song "No Place in Heaven" by Mika.

Preview:

Bernard Dowd couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment when he’d learned that his sexuality was something to hide. He couldn’t even say it was just one thing that put the notion in his head.

But by the time he’d reached high school, he was well-versed in what people meant when they called something gay. And he knew what happened to guys who kissed other guys. And he could recite homophobic buzzwords as easily as he could blink.

He wasn’t a religious kid. At least, not in the Western Christian way. He believed that gods existed; he just also believed that they walked among them, sometimes putting on capes to save the mere mortals below.

Which—that he could pinpoint: the first time he’d ever seen a god in real life.

He’d been in Metropolis for a class field trip. Gotham’s natural history museum was still under heavy reconstruction after a recent Black Mask heist had ended… explosively.

Unfortunately for them, so did their field trip.

Bernard was ninety percent sure that it was because they were Gothamites. Too many of them in a certain concentration just seemed to beget trouble, even in other cities.

The news called it a failed police drone experiment. Bernard called it “more proof toward there being a secret worldwide oligarchy,” because no way should something like it have passed through the reasonable due process to obtain funding. But he was younger and more hopeful, then, too, so he still believed that politicians wanted what was best for their people. Because his parents were politicians like that, and if they didn’t have good intentions, then what did that mean for him?

Their word was law, not just in city hall, but in his household, too—which honestly could have posed as city hall anyway, with the way they carried themselves, even at home.

He didn’t come to realize how wrong he was about his parents until he was sixteen. They had opened his door to see him sitting on the edge of his bed, lips locked onto the cute brunette boy’s from his math class, and it… hadn’t gone well.

They told him that it wasn’t because he was a boy. It was just that the boy wasn’t good enough for him. Bernard wasn’t sure he really believed them, especially after the boy stopped texting him after that.

Bernard hadn’t told anyone about it. Not even Darla Aquista, or Tim Drake, the two people out of his myriad of fair-weather friends that he considered to be his actual, real friends. His best friends.

They were his best friends, but he didn’t even tell them, because what was he meant to say? That his parents had scared off a possible boyfriend? That they were doing what any parent might do, chasing off someone he’d been sneaking around with? He couldn’t guarantee that either of them wouldn’t freak out—or worse, tell other people—if they found out he liked boys the way he liked girls.

So he kept that to himself, just like he kept everything else that mattered to himself.

It was easy to do, after all. When he felt something bubbling up inside of him, something that he wanted to admit, he’d just slip one of his recent theories into the forefront of his brain instead, because they were distracting in a way that nothing else was. He loved trying to puzzle out the answers to things, and he loved how many possibilities there were for those answers to be something unexpected or exciting or bigger than himself, because in a world like theirs, everything was unexpected and exciting and bigger than him.

The proof was in the god that had saved their school bus from being destroyed by a hulking mass of metal and guns. It was in a god whose eyes were bluer than any sky or ocean he’d ever seen, a god whose skin had glowed with the light of the sun.

A man like that couldn’t be anything but divine.

[Read the rest on AO3]

#timber #tim drake x bernard dowd #tim drake #bernard dowd #dc pride #my fic #ok to rb #dc fic #timber fic #urban legends 6 #darla aquista #the chaos cult #dc chaos #dc chaos cult

[porcelana-r0ta]

The Curse of Sight, Part 5

[Part 4] [Part 5]

Ao3 Link (only available to Ao3 members)

Summary: When Wes Weston meets Tim Drake-Wayne, the dots start connecting. And those dots form a bat. 

xxXxx

Tim Drake first met Wes Weston not as Tim, but as Red Robin. 

His initial impression of the kid was that he was either stupid or had no self-preservation, or a combination of both. What kind of person tries to make conversation with their mugger? Who just stands there and tries convincing their mugger that there’s no point in mugging them?

…Disregarding the fact that in a way, it worked. When Red Robin finally intervened, the mugger was only demanding Wes’s watch instead of a wallet. Wes had officially logicked his way out of handing over his mom’s “emergencies only” credit card. 

Of course, he didn’t know the kid’s name until a few days later, when he ran into him as a civilian at Wayne Enterprises. And Tim won’t lie: he really only wandered over to him at first because he smelled coffee. Once it registered that the coffee wasn’t for him, he lost interest until he saw the exact predicament Wes was in: his hands were too full of coffee to press the elevator call button.

So Tim waltzed over and pressed the up button, then followed him in to press the kid’s floor number. He even took two of the cartons while the elevator started pulling them up. 

It was during that exchange that Tim actually recognized Wes as the civilian who was too mouthy for his own good. Maybe Tim should have recognized him sooner, but he wasn’t exactly running on five hours of sleep, it’d been a few days, and Tim can’t remember every person he saves because then he’d have no room for important memories, like where to get the best coffee, and what insults annoy Damian the most.

After making the connection between the redhead civilian and the redhead intern, it amused Tim to note how Wes seemed more frightened of him than the mugger. But it made sense in the capitalist America they lived in: Tim is his boss, who holds much more financial power over Wes than a one-time mugger. Of course he’s more scared of one of the people who can determine if he’ll get into a good college and have a good job. 

The interaction should have just ended with him helping Wes drop off the coffee to the PR Department, but then Jade Oswald started aggressively shoving the cardboard carton holders into Wes’s hands, and Wes just took it. 

This was what Wes’d been so worried about. 

Tim puts a swift stop to it, and makes a Wayne-typical flirty statement to Wes about bringing him a coffee next time he runs out. It doesn’t occur to his caffeine-addled mind until patrol that night that a baby intern might take the CEO’s words seriously. 

Oops. 

Well, they were going to have that meeting with PR in the morning anyway, so it’d be fine. He’d be able to correct it then. 

But then he didn’t see Wes when he and Bruce went to floor 73, and the meeting was interrupted by Wes to drop off coffee, and Wes remembered his order. 

And he ordered blond espresso because it has more caffeine, something that Alfred won’t let him have anymore for that exact reason. 

Tim’s pretty sure there were stars in his eyes as he whispered, “You are a coffee god.” 

After that, he couldn't just not enable Wes to bring him the nectar of the gods. He gave Wes his phone number and told him to inform him when he’s on a coffee run so he can tell Wes where he’s at. The next day, when Wes dutifully texted him, Tim jumped at the opportunity to escape from Lucius Fox’s coded scoldings about tearing up some of the Bat-tech he provides. As they walked and talked, Tim found that he actually had a lot in common with Wes, and that the intern was quick-witted even if a little anxious. 

And, well. The rest is history, as they say. 

“Did you finally ask Wes to the Pride Gala, Tim?” Steph asks gleefully at supper. 

He resists the urge to sink lower in his seat. It’d be too big of a tell. Still, he can’t keep the grumble out of his voice when he says, “...Kinda.”

“Kinda?”

He mutters something under his breath.

“What was that, Timmers?” Dick asks. He’s still on a short leash thanks to being kidnapped as a civilian last week, so he’d compromised and agreed to drive in for supper a few times this week to put Bruce’s worried dad-heart at rest. 

“I said I asked him and Rebecca to work the gala for TikTok!” 

Everyone else’s side conversations halt at his words, and not even the clatter of silverware can be heard. 

Tim allows himself to sink further into his seat now. 

“So you have a crush on this kid and to spend time with him, you asked him to work an event?” Dick asks.

He shifts the piece of steak he’d cut around on his plate, “...Uh, yes. That covers it.”

“Wow,” Duke comments. “That’s gotta be some kind of abuse of power.” 

Tim whips his head up at that, “You think so? Should I tell him never mind? I don’t want to—”

“Now, Master Timothy,” Alfred chimes in from his place at the table beside Bruce. “I don’t think there’s reason to panic. You spend a lot of time with him as equals, don’t you? If he didn’t want to work the event, I’m sure he would feel comfortable saying no.”

But now Tim’s nerves are fried, and he’s glad for the fork in his hand that prevents him from playing with the hem of his hoodie. “But I’m the CEO of the company he works at. How can I be sure that any of this is consensual on his end? I—”

“You’re worried about nothing,” Steph cut in comfortingly. She smirks, “Besides, I’ve stalked you two on multiple occasions now. It’s safe to say he likes you.” 

He slams his fork onto the plate to point at her angrily, “I knew it! I got into a fight with Jason because of you!” She’d told him that the older boy was planning on stalking them for blackmail material, and he’d pinned the stare he could feel on the back of his head as Jason’s. He should’ve known it was psychological espionage. 

Steph only grins innocently, “You two were really cute at Robinson Park. I mean, when you—”

He picks his fork back up and flings it at her. She dodges accordingly and the fork lodges in the back of her seat, right where her head would have been. 

“Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne!” Bruce scolds. 

“Middle-named,” Dick hisses. “Ouch.” 

“I didn’t know you were taking lessons from Damian,” Steph says casually, removing the fork from the wood and tossing it back to him. 

He catches it and says simultaneously with Damian, “I would never.” 

They exchange irritated looks at the accidental twinning. 

“Don’t,” Bruce says when Damian opens his mouth. The younger shuts his mouth obligingly and returns to eating his food. Bruce turns back to Tim, “You know better than to throw silverware at the dinner table.” 

Tim sighs, “You’re right. Sorry, Alfred.” 

“Thank you, Master Timothy,” Alfred gracefully accepts as Bruce’s brow twitches. 

“Really, Tim?” 

“Really, what, B? You’ll need to be more specific.” 

Bruce only sighs, and Tim and Steph snicker in response. 

“Back to the matter at hand,” Dick says, “you should really work on your communication skills, Tim. You don’t wanna end up like Bruce, do you?”

“All of my relationships have been perfectly fine, Dick.” Bruce rolls his eyes. 

Tim squints scrutinizingly at Bruce, “No, no. He has a point.” 

Even Damian nods, “It’s true, Father. Even Mother says that you are not adept at communication in romantic relationships.” 

“Gross, didn’t need to know that.” Steph wrinkles her nose, and Tim mirrors the action subconsciously in his own disgust. 

“Yeah, way TMI, Baby Bat,” Dick says. 

Dinner continues in much the same affair, and at the end, Tim follows Damian up to his room. 

“Why are you following me, Drake?” Damian finally asks when he gets to his bedroom door instead of continuing to ignore Tim. 

“I wanted to ask you something—”

“The answer is no.”

“You haven’t even heard me out yet!”

Damian sighs, long-suffering like he’s 80 and not 12. “What is it?” 

“I had a meeting with Penny Rolland and others at PR,” he starts. He should credit Wes, but he knows that Damian will say no if he knows it’s just an intern’s idea. “We were thinking of utilizing WE’s new TikTok for some Wayne Family exposure that wouldn’t include the press. Our first idea is having you introduce your pets.” 

The look Damian gives him is unimpressed, “You just want an excuse to have your crush in Wayne Manor without the paparazzi scaring him off.”

“That’s not true! I can invite him over without needing work as an excuse!”

“Drake, all you are is work. It’s disgusting.” Damian furrows his brow in emphasis, looking every inch the Wayne he is. 

Tim rolls his eyes, “Okay, fine. I’ll have an interview scheduled with Grey Howard for you, then.” 

Grey Howard was easily the most nosy, intolerable, and uncomfortable human being to have ever cursed the world with her presence. It was a punishment to even be in the same building as her, nevermind be interviewed by her. 

Damian’s eyes narrowed, “You wouldn’t.” 

“Try me.” Tim squares his shoulders back. 

They glare into each other’s eyes for a good thirty seconds before Damian breaks with a scoff, “Fine. But Richard brings Haley and I get to approve of everything that goes in this plebeian ‘TikTok,’ understood?” 

“Of course.” Tim knows how much of a sacrifice it is to have a public persona. Sure, there wasn’t any privacy in a place like the League of Assassins, but being surrounded by nosy assassins was a lot different from being in the spotlight of the demanding public. Public that felt like they were entitled to every space the Waynes could inhabit, even their home. “Thanks… Damian.”

“Tt. Whatever, Drake.” Then he backed into his room and slammed the door. 

That actually went better than expected. Still, Tim is 80% sure he only agreed because he’d get to show off his beloved pets, and he’d get to see Haley.

Tim heads back to his room and shoots off a quick text to Dick about Friday, which he gets a quick, “Show off my baby Haley? Ofc I’m in!” in response. As expected. 

He then finishes off a few WE emails and then heads to the cave to suit up for patrol. He’s been taking a new route lately, a route that passes over Wes’s home. And if he tends to linger there for longer than normal, watching for threats or maybe even just a glimpse of red hair, then well. That’s between him and Gotham’s smoggy sky. 

xxXxx

The next day at work, Tim can’t make it to Wes’s coffee run, too caught up with the Board to swing down. But when his lunch break rolls around, he leaves his office. 

“Sadie, I’m going out for lunch. I’ll be back at one,” he informs his secretary. 

“You’ve been taking more breaks lately,” she notes, organizing a stack of papers. “Normally, you work through lunch.” 

“Is this a bad thing?”

“On the contrary, Mr. Drake-Wayne.” Sadie pauses in her work to make eye contact. “I think it’s a very good thing. And I have heard that it’s for a good boy, hm?”

Tim’s ears grow hot. Damn office gossip. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Mh-hmm, of course, Mr. Drake-Wayne. Enjoy your lunch. I’ll hold your calls until 1:30.”

“I said I’d be back by one.” 

“And I said I’d hold your calls until 1:30.” 

So basically, don’t come back until 1:30. 

God, she is just like Alfred. But that’s why he’d hired her and kept her on. Bruce’s secretary, Bev, is very similar, even. 

“You got it. You enjoy your lunch, too.”

“Thank you, Mr. Drake-Wayne.” 

Tim then rushes for the elevator and hits the summon button, trying to feel less hot. 

Stop. Blushing. 

The elevator dings and the door opens, and the space inside is blessedly empty. He enters and hits the 73rd floor.  His ride is only interrupted once by two busy-talking suits from the law department, and he’s able to get away with minimal interaction. 

When the elevator opens to the floor of the PR Department, he makes his way over to Rebecca’s cubicle, where Wes can always be found. 

Only, he’s not there. 

He frowns as he takes in the sight of Rebecca focused on her desktop, typing away on a Google Doc, and the empty stool that should be occupied by Wes. He knocks on the side of the cubicle for Rebecca’s attention, and her head whips to look at him. 

“Oh, Mr. Drake-Wayne,” she says. “Looking for Wes?”

“Yes, would you happen to know where he is?” 

“He’s with Ms. Rolland,” she answers. “They’re in her office.” 

“Ah,” he says. With his mom. That makes sense. “Okay, thanks. While I’m here, I should tell you that Damian and Dick have agreed to appear on the WE TikTok to introduce their pets to the public.” 

Her eyes light up, “Really? That’s great! Thank you, Mr. Drake-Wayne. I’ll draft up a narration, but it’ll still be the two introducing the pets and telling the audience about them. So it’ll be more like, ‘Ever wondered about the beloved pets of the Waynes? Well, let’s take a look!’ type of thing, and then your brothers would tell us about them and show them off, and maybe play with them a little.”

“That sounds great, Rebecca.” And it does because it’s low effort for Damian, who wants to stab a katana through a camera more than he wants to smile at one. “I’ll talk to you and Wes about it more later, okay?”

“For sure,” she nods vigorously. “Enjoy your lunch date, sir.” 

Aaaaaannnnd the burning ears are back. “Lunch date?”

“Oh, sorry, is that not what you needed Wes for?” Rebecca blinks innocently. “I didn’t mean to assume….”

Wait. Hold on. If that’s what Rebecca was assuming, does that mean she—

Has Wes told her something? Confided a crush in her? Or… is this just teasing like with Sadie? 

His stomach twists, and he vaguely thinks that maybe he should reprimand her—they don’t have a working relationship like he does with Sadie—but he’s Gen Z and much less uptight than his older employees, and he’s more concerned with the potential of what Wes thinks of him. 

He opens his mouth to ask, and then clicks it shut when the movement brings a surge of fear. 

“I should go,” he hears himself say, and then he walks at a perfectly normal and calm pace to Ms. Rolland’s office. 

He clasps his palms over his cheeks a few times to tame the redness, takes a deep breath, and then knocks. At the immediate call of, “Come in,” he opens the door. 

“Mr. Drake-Wayne,” Penny greets upon seeing him come through the door, and Wes’s head snaps up at him from where he’d been hunching over a laptop. “Here for my son?” 

Well, at least it makes sense for her to ask that, he thinks despairingly to himself before clearing his throat, “Ah, yes, I was hoping he’d be alright with going out to lunch with me?” 

Wes fiddles with his fingers, cracking the joints within them, “Yeah, I’ll go. Mom?” 

“Where do you plan on going?” she asks, and Wes cuts a questioning glance to Tim. 

“I was thinking Chinese?” he suggests. “Probably Chopsticks, since it’s close by.” 

“Chinese sounds good,” Wes agrees, shutting his laptop and standing, then setting the laptop down on the chair he’d been occupying. “I’ll see you, Mom. Should we bring you anything back?”

“No, just have fun. Both of you.”

“You got it, Ms. Rolland,” Tim replies and holds open the door for Wes. 

They exit Wayne Enterprises, keeping up a steady flow of conversation between them as they go, and Tim taking the lead. Chopsticks is only a few blocks away, but they have to cross a few streets to get there. Because Gotham traffic is nothing to sneeze at, it’ll take a while to get there. 

“How’s work been? Find anything about the My Immortal fan?” Wes asks casually as the sun beats down on them even while behind gray clouds. 

“No,” Tim snorts. It’s been driving B crazy. And Barbara and Tim himself, of course. The guy has no history—he’s brand new to the game. They didn’t even get a name from him, so Bruce has taken to calling him N—short for Neon, which derives from the toxic green highlighting his otherwise black suit. Dick, on the other hand, refers to him as Ebony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way. Or just Ebony for short. 

One of the misnomers has more character than the other. Bruce is, unsurprisingly, outvoted in Ebony’s name. At least when with most of his kids. 

“That’s too bad,” Wes says. “But I guess you’re more worried about the gala, huh?” 

“Yeah,” Tim agrees, even if it’s a lie. He’s had way too many sleepless nights analyzing the video of Ebony to be too concerned with the Pride Gala. “It’s… a lot.” 

Wes nods, his lips turning down a tic, “I bet. I mean, you’re like, the glue of WE. And you’re only seventeen.” 

If Tim wasn’t a Bat, he’s pretty sure he would have faltered in his step. But Tim is a Bat and so instead, his eyes just flick to Wes’s for a fraction of a second. 

It’s true. He is only seventeen. But Tim feels much, much older than that some days. He feels older than Jason, older than Dick, older than Bruce. (But maybe not older than Alfred, who has the wisdom of the gods, really.) 

“Yeah.” He swallows. His throat suddenly feels dry. “I am.” 

Wes senses this sudden turn, and he gently elbows Tim in the ribs. “Hey,” he says. “You’re doing great. I mean, I couldn’t do half of what you do. It’s honestly exhausting to think about. My mom watches the news every morning before we go to work, and WE stock is way higher since you took over. Still, you could stand to act more like a teenager.” 

“I could, huh?” He chuckles, but his mind is clouded. He thinks of how he was when he was eleven, ten, nine. He thinks of absent parents and empty mansions with empty pantries. 

“Totally,” Wes nods emphatically. “We’ll work on it. We’ll– we’ll— I dunno, go to a stupid B movie or go to a carnival that took only twelve hours of set up, or something. Something normal dangerous, and not Gotham dangerous. And we’ll play dumb carnival games and spend too much money trying to win rigged games, and we’ll ride rides that are held together with duct tape.” 

Tim’s lips quirk up. What Wes is describing sounds remarkably like a date. His heart sings at the idea, and his brain points out all the moments of Wes’s blushing and stuttering, like he was nervous around a crush. And Tim hopes. 

God, he hopes. 

“A carnival, huh?” he asks, and chickens out of suggesting that it’s a date. Because all the signals that Wes has given could be nerves from speaking with the CEO of the company he works at, the company his mother works at. “My brother might be a little offended over your description of a carnival, though.”

“He was in the circus, not the carnival. It’s totally different.” Wes shakes his head and slams his hand into the last call button for the crosswalk before they’ll be on the correct block for Chopsticks. As they wait, a few other Gothamites join them at the sidewalk corner. 

“Is it?” he muses, even though he can hear Dick in his head outlining all the differences between a carnival and a circus. 

“It totally is,” Wes insists. “C’mon, dude. I live in the most— I live in the middle of nowhere. All we have is the yearly carnival. I think I’d know. We did have a circus, once, but. It was this whole thing.” 

“A whole thing?”

“Yeah.” Wes winces. “It was some scheme to steal jewelry, or whatever. So now we just have the carnival when it comes to town.” 

Huh, interesting. Maybe he’d have to check that out, just to get his mind off Ebony for a while. 

“Well, that sucks. What town are you from again?”

The light switches from an angry orange hand to a cheerful, white stick figure in the middle of walking. Wes answers as they begin to cross the street, “I’m from Amity Park, Illinois. It’s the middle of nowhere, like I said. But we did have Ember McLain come for a concert, once!” 

Tim already knew he was from Amity Park, IL. And Tim knows a lot more than what Wes has told him, too. There’s so much a person can discover from just the internet and a phone number. Well, that, and Tim has access to a lot of employee information. 

“Ember McLain?” he asks in surprise. He hasn’t done that much research into Amity, just enough to know more about Wes. But a town that size having a big-name celebrity like Ember come for a concert? That was odd. 

Wes nods, “Yeah, it was really cool. A fan did almost fall off a billboard, though. Which, really. Dumb as hell. Could never be me.” 

They reach the restaurant and enter, and as it’s a seat-yourself restaurant, Tim leads Wes over to an empty booth in the back corner of the establishment, where they will be less likely to be noticed. It’s dimly lit, but Tim can still make out every one of Wes’s freckles. Once they sit, they each grab a menu from the menu stand at the table and talk as they peruse their food options. 

“That’s scary,” Tim comments idly, already planning to search for a newspaper article about the incident. “Did you go to the concert?” Did you see it? 

“Yeah,” Wes says. “Pretty much everyone did. The guy was one of my classmates.” 

“Sounds traumatizing.” 

“He was fine. Dumb, though. Like I said, could never be me. His girlfriend was pissed, though. Or, well. Friend. They’re dating now. But not at the time. Sorry, that’s probably boring.” 

“Ah,” Tim says. Small-town drama is fascinating. “Not at all! I want to hear more about your life.” 

Wes looks away. His blush is somehow more noticeable in the dark than in Gotham’s poor excuse of sunlight. Tim hopes it means crush and not embarrassed to only have small-town stories. “Really?” he asks. 

“Really,” Tim reassures. “Honestly, we don’t get that kind of close-knit knowledge of neighbors in a place like Gotham. We just know about every villain’s drama, which. Less fun than knowing which of your classmates was a creepy celebrity-stalker.” 

Tim is sure that he’s the classmate in this scenario. Which, well. Is unfortunate. But his first meeting with Wes was through mugging! Clearly, his friend needed to be looked after. 

“Haha,” Wes giggles nervously, and Tim’s heart lurches in his chest. Cute! “I guess that’s fair. Okay, so there’s this guy—” Tim’s heart then stops, “—who is, like, obsessed with one of my classmates. Bully type, you know? It’s totally because he’s in love with him.” 

Tim’s heart hesitantly begins beating again. “Oh?”

Wes nods, “For sure. I mean, you don’t give that amount of attention to someone unless you like them. We’re both on the basketball team, but Dash’s main focus is on football. Naturally. Anyway, he started getting tutoring from the kid’s older sister just to be around him more. Embarrassing, really. And pathetic. Just admit you’re gay and move on. And you’re not five anymore; pig-tail pulling is not the way to go. But he’s toned down a lot on the bullying since his parents divorced and his mom got custody, so. There’s that, I guess.” 

“That’s good,” Tim says, and thinks, Please keep talking. Please stay with me.

“Yeah, I guess. Maybe he’ll finally realize that his best friend is super in love with him and they’ll get together.” 

Tim looks at Wes and says, “Yeah, maybe.”

xxXxx

Tag List:

@theamazingfox @quietlyscared @lumosfeather18581   @blankliferain @amercurio @gin2212 @starscreamlover @hoarder-of-gender @the-ghost-trader @iariinay @ectoplasm024 @theblackcatscratchpost @chaos-n-kindness @overtherose @roseinbloom02

If you want to be added to the Tag List, just ask in the replies! 

Ao3 is updated first BUT I upload onto Tumblr about thirty minutes after uploading on Ao3, so don’t worry about missing out on early content or anything. Everything is updated within the hour :)

#dc x dp #dp x dc #dcxdp #dpxdc #wes weston/tim drake #tim drake/wes weston #wes weston #tim drake #stalker buddies au #the curse of sight #fanfic #dcxdp crossover #dpxdc crossover